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Personal Recollection 

...of... 

President Abraham Lincoln 
General Ulysses S. Grant 

...and... 

General William T. Sherman 



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...by.., 
MAJOR-GENERAL GRENVILLE M. DODGE 



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PRKSK.NTIil) BY 









COMPLIMENTS 



MAJOR-GENERAL GRENVILLE M. DODGE 






PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS 

— of— 

President Abraham Lincoln, 

General Ulvsses S. Grant 

j 

AND 

General William T. Sherman 



BY 

MAJOR-GENERAL GRENVILLE M. DODGE 



COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA 
THK MONARCH PRINTING COMPANY 

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PREFACE 



My personal recollections of President Lincoln 
and Generals Grant and Sherman, all three of 
whom, up to the time they died, showed their per- 
sonal friendship to me in many ways and many 
acts. 

Many years ago I had compiled data and writ- 
ten most of the following pages, and from time to 
time I have read papers before different patriotic 
gatherings upon each of these distinguished men. 
and have had many requests for copies and have 
also been urged to publish my recollections. 

During this summer while on my vacation. 1 
have compiled my data and rewritten the recollec- 
tions, adding letters and official documents that I 
thought would be of interest. 

GRENVILLB MELLEN DODGE. 

September, 1914. 




PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 1864 



PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS 
OF LINCOLN 



If there is any person living who should be grateful for an 
opportunity to pay his tribute to Abraham Lincoln, it is myself, 
for as President he raised me from a citizen to the highest com- 
mand and highest rank in the army. He was my friend from 
the time I first met him until I helped to lay him away in 
Springfield, Illinois. 

No one can appreciate what that friendship and what his 
acts were to me, unless they have experienced the benefit of 
it as I have. 

Now, before I take up the subject I am to write upon, I 
want to give you Abraham Lincoln's own biography of him- 
self, to show you from what a simple and low station he arose 
to be a great Statesman, a great Commander, a most just and 
kind ruler — the best of this era. 

In a letter to Mr. F. Fell he writes : 

I was born February 12, 1809, in Hardin county, Kentucky. 
My parents were both born in Virginia of undistinguished 
families — second families perhaps I should say. My mother, 
who died in my tenth year, was of a family of the name of 
Hanks, some of whom now reside in Adams, and others in 
Macon counties, Illinois. My paternal grandfather, Abraham 
Lincoln, emigrated from Rockingham county, Virginia, to 
Kentucky about 1781 or 1782, where a year or two later he was 
killed by Indians, not in battle but by stealth, when he was 
laboring to open a farm in the forest. His ancestors, who were 
Quakers, went to Virginia from Berka county, Pennsylvania. 
An effort to identify them with the new England family of the 
same name ended in nothing more definite than a similarity of 
Christian names in both families, such as Enoch, Levi, Morde- 
cai, Solomon, Abraham, and the like. 

My father, at the death of his father, was but six years of 
age, and he grew up literally without education. We removed 
from Kentucky to what is now Spencer county, Indiana, in 



8 Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 

my eighth year. "We reached our new home about the time the 
state came into the union. It was a wild region with many 
bears and other wild animals still in the woods. There I grew 
up. There were some schools, so called, but no qualification 
was ever required of a teacher beyond "readin', writin'. and 
cipherin' to the rule of three." 

If a straggler, supposed to understand Latin, happened to 
sojourn in the neighborhood, he was looked upon as a wizard. 
There was absolutely nothing to excite ambition for education. 
Of course, when I came of age I did not know much, still some- 
how I could read, write and cipher to the rule of three; but 
that was all. I have not been to school since. The little ad- 
vance I now have upon this store of education I have picked 
up from time to time under the present necessity. 

I was raised to farm work, which I continued till I was 
twenty-two. At twenty-one I came to Illinois and passed the 
first year in Sanganaw, now in Menard county, where I re- 
mained a year as a sort of clerk in a store. Then came the 
Black Hawk war and I was elected a Captain of Volunteers— 
a success which gave me more pleasure than any I have had 
since. I went into the campaign, was elected, ran for the Leg- 
islature the same year (1832) and was beaten— -the only time I 
ever have been beaten by the people. The next and then suc- 
ceeding biennial elections, I was elected to the Legislature. I 
was not a candidate afterward. During the Legislature period, 
I had studid law, and removed to Springfield to practice it. In 
1846 I was elected to the lower house of Congress. Was not a 
candidate for re-election. From 1849 to 1854, both inclusive. 
practiced law more assiduously than ever before. Always a 
Whig in politics, and generally on the Whig electorial tickets 
(making active canvasses). I was losing interest in politics 
when the repeal of the Missouri Compromise aroused me again. 
What I have done since then is pretty well known. 

It' any personal description of me is thought desirable, it 
may lie said: f am, in height, six feet four inches, nearly; 
lean in flesh, weighing on an average one hundred and eighty 
pounds; dark complexion with coarse black hair and grey 
eyes; no other marks or scars recollected. 

My first acquaintance with Mr. Lincoln was in Council 
Bluffs. Iowa, in August, 1859, I think the 11th day, right after 
his great debate with Douglass. He came here to look at some 
property in the Riddle Tract on which he had loaned some 
money to Mr. N. B. Judd, the attorney for the Rock Island 
R-ailroad. Mr. Judd was also the manager in the campaign 



Personal Kecollections of Lincoln. 9 

with Douglass. Mr. Lincoln, accompanied by Mr. 0. M. Hatch, 
Secretary of State of Illinois, came from Springfield to St. 
Joseph by rail, visited Kansas, then came up the Missouri 
River bj' steamboat. He found here two old friends who had 
lived in Springfield before they came to Council Bluffs, W. H. 
M. Pusey and Thomas Officer. While he was here the Hon. W. 
H. M. Pusey gave a reception at his residence that enabled our 
citizens generally to meet the two distinguished visitors. He 
was also induced to make a speech in Concert Hall, and the 
local paper notices of that speech and the comments were as 

follOAVS : 

From the Council Bluffs "Weekly Nonpareil.'' August 13, 
1859. 

HON. A. LINCOLN SPEAKS AT CONCERT HALL THIS 
EVENING AT HALF PAST 7 O'CLOCK- 
GO AND HEAR HIM. 

Hon. Abe Lincoln and the Secretary of State of Illinois. 
Hon. 0. M. Hatch, arrived in our city last evening, and are 
stopping at the Pacific House. The distinguished "sucker'' 
has yielded to the earnest importunities* of our citizens — with- 
out distinction of party— and will speak upon the political 
issues of the day, at Concert Hall this evening. The celebrity 
of the speaker will most certainly insure him a full house. Go 
and hear "Old Abe." 

From The Nonpareil, August 20, 1859. 

ABE LINCOLN. 

This distinguished gentleman addressed a very large aud- 
ience of ladies and gentlemen at Concert Hall in this city, Sat- 
urday evening last. In the brief limits of a newspaper article, 
it were impossible even though we wielded the trenchant pen 
of a Babbitt, which we do not, to give even an outline of his 
masterly and unanswerable speech. The clear and lucid man- 
ner in which he set forth the true principles of the republican 
party, in the dexterity with which he applied the political 
scalpel to the democratic carcass — beggars of all description 
at our hands. Suffice it, that the speaker fully and fairly sus- 
tained the great reputation he acquired in the memorable 
Illinois campaign, as a man of great intellectual power — a close 
and sound reasoner. 



10 Personal Reco llections of Lincoln. 

The Bugle, edited by Lyronder W. Babbitt, had this notice: 

The people of this city were edified last Saturday evening 
by a speech from Honorable Abe Lincoln of Illinois. He 
apologized very handsomely for appearing before an Iowa 
audience during a campaign in which he was not interested. 
He then, with many excuses and a lengthy explanation, as if 
conscious of the nauseous nature of the black Republican ros- 
trum, announced his intention to speak about the "Eternal 
Negro," to use his own language, and entered into a lengthy 
and ingenious analysis of the "nigger'' question, impressing 
upon his hearers that it was the only question to be agitated 
until finally settled. He carefully avoided going directly to the 
extreme ground occupied by him in his canvass against Doug- 
lass, yet the doctrines which he preached, carried out to their 
legitimate results, amount to precisely the same thing. He was 
decidedly opposed to any fusion or coalition of the Republican 
party with the opposition of the South, and clearly proved 
the correctness of his ground in point of policy. They must 
retain their sectional organization and sectional character, and 
continue to wage their sectional warfare by slavery agitation : 
but if the opposition in the South would accede to their views 
and adopt their doctrines, he was willing to run for president 
iu 1860, as southern man with northern principles, or in other 
words, with abolition proclivities. His speech was of the char- 
acter of an exhortation to the Republican party, but was in 
reality as good a speech as could have been made for the inter- 
est of the Democracy. He was listened to with much attention, 
for his Waterloo defeat by Douglass has magnified him into 
quite a lion here. 

Among others, 1 listened to his speech, which was very able, 
attractive and convincing. His manner of presenting his 
argument was very simple, his points so clear and well defined 
that it was easy for anyone to comprehend it. It was his 
method that made him so attractive as a public speaker. The 
crowd, as well as myself, was absolutely convinced that what 
he had said was true, and that his policy in the negro question 
in national affairs should be adopted. 

During the summer of 1859 I had been engaged in making 
reconnaissances west of the Missouri River for the Union 
Pacific Railroad. I came back to Council Bluffs with my party 
arriving here some time in August. Mr. Lincoln heard from 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 11 

someone of my explorations and surveys, also that I was in 
Council Bluffs, and he sought me out, and on the porch of the 
Pacific Hotel, for two hours, he engaged me in conversation 
about what I knew of the country west of the Missouri River, 
and greatly impressed me by the great interest he displayed 
in the work in which I was engaged. 

He inquired particularly as to the comparative merit of 
the forty-second Parallel, or Platte Valley lines, with the two 
southern and the northern lines surveyed by the Government. 
As to the two southern, I had no information; but about the 
northern survey I had obtained much valuable data. 

As a boy, I worked on Mrs. Edward Lander's farm in Dan- 
vers, Mass. Her son, Frederick W. Lander, was a civil engi- 
neer, and I was acquainted with him. He was employed by 
Lieut. Isaac N. Stevens, who had charge of the northern sur- 
vey from St. Paul to Oregon. 

Upon the arrival of their party on the Pacific Coast, young 
Landers left it to examine what he believed to be a superior 
route — following the Columbia and Snake River Valleys, 
thence through the South Pass and down the Platte Valley 
nearly a thousand miles to the Missouri River at Council Bluffs. 
I met him, and he gave me full information as to the main 
features of the northern route, and how far superior the nat- 
ural line was he had followed — holding the Snake and Platte 
River line to be far superior to the northern survey. 

This seemed to please Mr. Lincoln, and the building of both 
these lines — the Union Pacific & Oregon Short Line, and the 
Northern Pacific — has fully proved Lander's statements. 

He stated that there was nothing more important before 
the nation at that time than the building of the railroad to the 
Pacific Coast. He ingeniously extracted a great deal of infor- 
mation from me, and I found the secrets I had been holding 
for my employers in the East had been given to him. This 
interview was of the greatest importance to me. It was a 
milestone in my life, and Mr. Lincoln never forgot it. 



12 Personal I i i:« qlli:< tions of Lincoln. 

While he was in Council Bluffs the citizens took him up 
what is now Oakland avenue, to the point where the road 
turns into Rohrer Park, and he was greatly impressed with 
the beauty of the landscape. It is one of the most beautiful 
views in the world. You can look up and down the broad 
Missouri River valley for ten miles, and can look across into 
Nebraska and see Omaha, and from Florence to Bellevue. 

The Lincoln Memorial Association organized in this city 
in connection with the Daughters of the American Revolution 
erected on that spot a monument or memorial to Abraham 
Lincoln. 

The property which Mr. Lincoln had in the Riddle Tract 
was joined by that of Mr. C. L. Vallandingham of Ohio, a very 
bitter rebel during the war; a man of great ability, and who 
was a member of Congress, lie spent his time fighting and 
opposing the administration with great bitterness — so much 
so that he was arrested by General Burnside and tried for 
treason. He was convicted and sentenced to imprisonment 
during the war, I think at Fort Lafayette or sonic other 
national prison, and President Lincoln, notwithstanding the 
bitterness shewn toward him and the attacks made upon him, 
commuted the sentence and ordered him sent through the lines 
to the South. Vallandingham went through the lines, but he 
did not think the South treated him with proper consideration 
and he left there and went to Canada. He remained there until 
the war was over, then he came back to Ohio and ran for Gov- 
ernor and was defeated by over 100,000 majority. He then 
became, to the astonishment of everyone, a great advocate of 
universal suffrage for the negro. It is a singular fact that 
Vallandingham mel death by a pistol shot, the same as Presi- 
dent Lincoln, lie was trying a case in the courts of Ohio — a 
case of murder — and while he was showing the pistol used by 
the murderer he let it fall, and in falling it was discharged, 
wounding him. and he died from the wound. 



Peksonal Recollections of Lincoln. 13 

In 1860 when President Lincoln was a candidate of the 
Republican party. Mr. N. B. Judd of Chicago wrote me a letter 
and requested me to come to Chicago and aid as far as I 
could in the nomination of Mr. Lincoln. I went to Chicago 
and was greatly surprised when I got to the convention and 
found that there were only two votes for Abraham Lincoln in 
the Iowa delegation, the rest being scattered to Seward, 
McLane, and others. I thought the state next to Illinois 
should cast their entire vote for a man of Lincoln's ability and 
standing, and I did what I could to turn them to Lincoln. I 
was present at the conference the evening before the last day 
of balloting, when the Pennsylvania delegation led in an agree- 
ment with other states to cast their votes on the next day for 
Lincoln, and that would insure his nomination. I was anxious 
that the Iowa delegation should vote for him, which they all 
did with the exception of one or two. After his nomination 
and election, I went to Washington to the inauguration. I 
remember there was with me, Kasson, Allison, Gurley, David, 
Iloxie, and others, representing Iowa. We hired a house in the 
rear of the National Hotel, which we made our headquarters, 
and which became the headquarters for the state of Iowa. We 
all attended the inauguration and listened to Lincoln's inaug- 
ural speech. It impressed not only us but everyone who at- 
tended. When it was over we returned to the National Hotel. 
Judge Denio of Springfield, a very tall man — I should say six 
feet four inches — was very enthusiastic in praise of Lincoln 
and they induced him to make a speech. He got up on a table 
and in describing the speech he said: 'There has only one 
address ever been made better than that of Lincoln and that 
was Christ's sermon on the Mount." 

During the time we were in Washington, there was great 
alaimi and a great deal of discussion as to what the policy of 
the Government would be, what part Lincoln would take in it, 
and what his acts would be. I visited Lincoln with ex-Senator 



14 Personal Kecqllectiqns of Lincoln. 

Nye and Mr. Davis of New York and we had a long conversa- 
tion with him in relation to the conditions, what should be 
done, and giving him our opinions. He listened very atten- 
tively to what we had to say, and by referring to my diary I 
see that he replied that he was not alarmed ; that he felt that 
he could take this country safely through the crisis. "When 
we left we were greatly strengthened in our belief in his 
ability, and felt ho would carry the country through, no matter 
what occurred. 

In the spring of 1863 1 was in command of the district of 
< 'orinth. Mississippi. I had just returned from the campaign 
to the rear of Bragg up the Tennessee Valley. There had fol- 
lowed me back to Corinth thousands of negroes which were a 
great burden to us. We had to feed them, and as yet there 
had been no policy determined by the Government as to how 
they should be treated or what should be done with them. I 
had them on my hands and made a camp outside of Corinth for 
them. I put at the head of it the Chaplain of the 27th Ohio 
Infantry, named Alexander, and endeavored to utilize the 
negroes by putting them on plantations to work, so as to par- 
tially earn their living, and using them as teamsters and in 
camp work. T first put over them a guard of white soldiers. 
but the troops at that time objected very seriously to guarding 
negroes and there was a great deal of trouble in relation to it. 
Finally Chaplain Alexander came to me and said he believed. 
if 1 would let him have the arms, he could organize two negro 
companies that would guard that camp much better than the 
white soldiers. I agreed to do this and. although 1 had abso- 
lutely no authority for doing so, I gave him the arms and he 
organized two companies of negroes, officering them with some 
sergeants from my command. That action caused a great deal 
of criticism but it worked admirably. Soon after I had armed 
these negroes, I received an order from General Grant, to go 
to Washington and to report to the Adjutant General. He 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 15 

gave no reasons for my going there. I could not but think 
that they were going to call me to account for the action I 
had taken in arming the negroes, and I went with a good deal 
of anxiety until I reached Washington and reported to the 
Adjutant General, and he informed me that the President 
wished to see me and he made an appointment with President 
Lincoln for me. I went in and met the President, who greeted 
me very cordially, and learned from him that I had been called 
there for the purpose of aiding him in determining the loca- 
tion on the Missouri River where the Union Pacific Railroad 
should have its initial point. When I heard this it was a great 
relief to me. I sat there with him and Ave discussed that ques- 
tion very fully, and I saw he was thoroughly posted on the 
sentiment of the country locally, as every town from Sioux 
City to Kansas City was contending for the location. The 
people interested at that time remember what a discussion 
there was in regard to where the initial point of the Union 
Pacific should be located. From an engineering point of view, 
I pointed out clearly to the President where the line should 
start and what our surveys had determined. He listened and 
discussed this question with me for a long time. I saw from 
his talk and his indication that his views coincided with mine, 
and I have no doubt he made his decision at that time, as rec- 
ommended by me, and soon after made this order: 

I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do 
hereby fix so much of the western boundry of the State of 
Iowa as lies between the north and south boundaries of the 
United States township within which the city of Omaha is 
situated as the point from which the line of railroad and tele- 
graph in that section mentioned shall be constructed. 

This order was not considered definite enough by the com- 
pany and on March 7, 1864, President Lincoln issued the 
second executive order as follows : 

I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do, 
upon the application of said company, designate and establish 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 



such first named point on the western boundary of the State 
of Iowa, east of and opposite to the east line of Section 10, 
in Township 15, south of Range 13, east of the sixth princi- 
pal meridian in the Territory of Nebraska. 

On March 8, 1864, he notified the United States Senate that 
an the 17th day of November, 1863, he had located the "East- 
ern terminus of the Union Pacific Railway within the limits 
of the township in Iowa opposite to the town of Omaha." 
Since then, he says, "the company has represented to me that 
upon additional survey made, it has determined upon the pre- 
cise point of departure of the branch road from the Missouri 
River, and located same within the limits designated in the 
order of November last." This point is near where the Union 
Pacific Transfer now stands. 

After my talk with Lincoln in relation to the fixing of the 
terminal, naturally the question of the building of the Union 
Pacific came up. The law of 1862 had been passed but the 
promoters of the road had been unable to raise a single dollar 
to build it; they could not induce the capitalists to take hold 
of it, notwithstanding the fact that the United States had 
loaned its credit — it having the first lien on the property while 
the company's bonds were only second mortgage bonds. There 
was no one in the United States then who had enough confi- 
dence in the future of the Union Pacific Railroad to buy sec- 
ond mortgage bonds at any price. I discussed that question 
with him. I thought that the Government of the United States 
should build this road; it was too big a job for private enter- 
prise. He said the Government of the United States had all 
it could care for then, but that he and the Government were 
willing to do anything they could to aid any company who 
would take this matter up in earnest and raise the money and 
go forward with the work. He intimated that he was perfectly 
willing to have the law changed so that the Govern ment should 
take the second mortgage and the promoters of the road should 
take the first. Prom my visit with President Lincoln. I went 



Personal Kecollections of Lincoln. 1? 

to New York to see my friends who had organized the Union 
Pacific road. Mr. John A. Dix, Mr. Henry Farnam, T. C. Dur- 
ant, Francis Train, and others, and I told them in a board 
meeting what President Lincoln had said and they were greatly 
encouraged, and made up their minds to take the matter up, 
and they went before Congress and in 1864 they passed the 
Law which placed the mortgage bonds of the company ahead 
of the mortgage bonds of the Government, and with the Gov- 
ernment's and other mortgage bonds they were enabled to 
start the road, and by 1865 they had built the road as far west 
as Fremont. When I came back from the army in 1866 I took 
charge, and in three years it was finished. It was the fore- 
sight, the nerve and determination of Abraham Lincoln that 
forced Congress to give the promoters of that road the first 
mortgage bonds and the Government taking a second lien 
that insured its completion. In discussing this matter Presi- 
dent Lincoln said it was not only a commercial necessity but a 
military necessity for the purpose of holding the Pacific coast 
in the Union. 

I did not see Mr. Lincoln again until in October. 1864. I was 
given confederate leave of absence at Atlanta in August, 1864. 
As soon as I was well enough to travel General Grant invited 
me to visit him at City Point, where his army was lying after 
the great campaign of the "Wilderness and the Potomac. I went 
to City Point and spent two weeks with General Grant. I saw 
there the finest of all our armies, the best equipped, the best 
organized, and it had everything that a soldier could need. 
Rufus Ingles took us up to their sample room, showing me the 
supplies they had ready to furnish the soldiers. General 
(riant said, "Dodge, if you just had this sample room it would 
be all you would want for your Corps." I met most of the 
officers of his army. I visited the Army of the James, and I 
saw the efforts of General Butler, who commanded that 
Army, to break through the enemies' line into Richmond. 



18 Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 

I was greatly impressed as I saw the troops move up to 

the enemies' works and stand so steadily and receive the 
destructive fire of the enemy without taking cover. In (he 
West, under the same conditions, our men would have gone 
to cover when they saw there was no possibility of carrying 
the works before them, but here they seemed to wait for an 
order, and my anxiety For them was such that 1 could not help 
expressing my surprise that they did not either charge or go 
to cover, but they stood and took the murderous fire until the 
command to retire was given. In the West, during the time 
they stood there, our whole line would have found shelter be- 
hind trees or buried themselves in rifle pits. 

In the evening, we would sit around the camp fire at City 
Point, and General Grant, in that comprehensive and conversa- 
tional way he had of describing any affair when he felt at 
liberty to talk freely, and which is shown so plainly in his 
Memoirs, told me of his campaigns from the Wilderness to City 
Point; of many of his plans that failed to materialize for 
various reasons which he gave. After listening several even- 
ings to the discussion of these matters, I asked General Grant, 
very innocently and naturally, who was responsible for the 
failure of these plans, and looking at me in a humorous way, 
which was in his disposition, he said, "That, General, has not 
yet been determined." I said, "If it had been in the West. 
some of us would have lost our heads." General Grant was 
never known to publicly make a criticism of an officer. 

I want to say that these were the darkest days of Grant's 
career in the East, for the country had commenced to talk 
about his campaign as not being a success, his great battles 
as butcheries, and there was a great deal of criticism of them. 

There was about as many men deserting from that army 

drafted men-^as there were recruits coming to him, but Gen- 
eral Grant was certain thai his next campaign would be a 
success. 



Personal Recollections or Lincoln. 19 

When I was starting back to my command. General Grant 
requested me to call on President Lincoln. lie did not give 
me any reason why I should go, but. of course, a request from 
him was an order, and 1 went to Washington on his steamer. 
There was mi board this steamer, General Rufus Ingalls, the 
Quartermaster of his Army, and Major-General Boyle, Com- 
mander of the British forces in Canada. Major-Gen eral Boyle 
was an old, gray-haired man. 1 was a young man and the one 
thing that troubled the General was that he could not under- 
stand why I, so .young, could have the same rank as he did— 
an old man sixty years of age. 

When T arrived at Washington and went to the White 
House to call on President Lincoln, I met Senator Harlan of 
my state in the ante-room and he took me in to see the Presi 
dent. It happened to be at the hour when the President was 
receiving the crowd in the ante-room next to his room. Sen- 
ator Harlan took me up to him immediately and presented me 
to him. President Lincoln received me cordially and said he 
was very glad to see me. He asked me to sit down while he dis- 
posed of the crowd. I sat down and waited; T saw him take 
each person by the hand and in his kindly way dispose of them. 
To an outsider, it would seem that they all got what they want- 
ed, for they seemed to go away happy. T sat there for some 
time, and felt that I was over-staying my time with him, so 
stepped up and said that I had merely called to pay my respects 
and that I had no business, so would say goodbye. President 
Lincoln turned to me and said, "If you have the time, 1 wish 
you would wait; I want to talk with yon." 1 sat down again 
and waited quietly until he had disposed of the crowd. When 
he was through, he took me into the next room. He saw that I 
was ill-at-ease, so he took down from his desk a little book 
called "The Gospel of Peace.'' I think it was written by 
Artemus Ward and was very humorous. He opened the book, 
crossed his le<_;s, ami lii'Sfati to read a portion of a chapter, 



-u L'k usonaj. .l >'i-:ruLi,ia tiuns of Lincoln. 

which was so humorous that I began to laugh, and it brought 
me to myself. When he saw that he had gotten me in his 
power, lie laid the book down and began to talk to me about 
my visit to the Army of the Potomac and what I saw. He did 
nnt say a single word about my own command or about the 
West, showing his whole interest was in the Army of the 
Potomac. While we were sitting there talking we were called 
to lunch. During tin- meal he talked about the Army of the 
Potomac and aboul Grant, and finally led up to the place where 
he asked me the question of what I thought about Grant, and 
what 1 thought about his n< \t campaign. Just as he asked the 
question, we got up -from the table. I answered, "Mr. Presi- 
dent, you know we western men have the greatest confidence 
in General Grant; 1 have no doubt, whatever, that in this next 
campaign lie will defeat Lee — how. or when he is to do it, I 
cannot tell, but I am sure of it." He took my hand in both of 
his and very solemnly said. "Yon don't know how glad 1 am 
to hear you say that." I did not appreciate then what a great 
strain lie was under -not until reading Welles' Celebrated 
Diary, showing that Lincoln had no person around him to 
advise him; that everything he did was from his own thoughts 
and decision. It is a wonder to me that he ever got through 
the war so successfully. 1 did not know then that Lincoln's 
table was piled with letters demanding the change of Grant, 
declaring that his campaign was a failure and wanting to have 
a different commander sent, etc. When I was ready to least'. 
I thanked President Lincoln for what he had done for me and 
asked if there was anything I could do for him. He said, "If 
you don't care. 1 would like to have you take my respects to 
your Army." 

On leaving President Lincoln, I returned to my own com- 
mand, or as near to it as I could get, expecting to go to the 
command of my Corps under Sherman. I was still physically 
not ver\ strong, and Sherman said that lie would not take me 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 21 



with him as he did not think T eould stand the trip. Therefore, 
i was assigned to a command at Vicksburg, Mississippi, with 
a view of taking a command to the rear of Mobile when .Sher- 
man marched to the sea. expecting, with the aid of General 
Canby and the fleet to capture that place. When T reached 
Cairo on my way to Vicksburg, I received a dispatch from the 
War Department to proceed immediately to St. Louis. Soon 
after my arrival 1 received an order to relieve General Rose- 
crans, and as soon as I w T as in command to notify the War 
Department. T learned from a private dispatch that 1 
received from General Grant that he had requested Gen- 
eral Rosecrans to be relieved and T to take his com- 
mand, because he and the War Department did not consider 
that General Rosecrans had made a proper use of his command 
in defeating the movement of Price into Missouri, as Price had 
a force much smaller than that of General Rosecrans. 1 as- 
sumed command of that Department and Army on the second 
day of December. I found that there had been a great many 
dispatches sent to General Rosecrans to send all the troops he 
could spare to General Thomas, who was in a death struggle 
with General Hood in Nashville. I received a similar dispatch 
from General Halleek, at the end of which he quoted a part of 
Grant's dispatch to him giving the order, whieh was: "With 
such an order. Dodge can be relied upon to send all that can 
properly go." T learned afterwards that President Lincoln 
was present when this order was given, and that it was he who 
suggested to General Halleek that that portion of Grant's 
dispatch should he added, saying, it mighl induce Dodge to 
make an extra effort to help Thomas out. 

When I received this dispatch, I looked my command over. 
There were no organized Rebel forces in Missouri, nothing but 
guerrillas and partisan bands who were robbing and killing, 
not righting anyone, and T made up my mind that there was 
really no necessity for any federal troops in Missouri: there- 



32 Pebsoj" vi. \Ua qi.u:< -th ins of Lincoln*. 

fore. I gathered together every organized regiment in that 
state and sent Thomas some fifteen thousand men. ineludintr 
two Divisions of the 16th Corps, under the command of Major- 
General A. J. Smith. At the Battle of Nashville, this force 
turned Hood's left and started the defeat and destruction of 
Hood's Army. 

I found in Missouri a state of affairs existing in no other 
state in the Union. Tt was one-half Rebel and one-half Union. 
It was brother against brother and father against son. There 
had been a greal many murders in the state and they were con- 
tinually being committed. President Lincoln took a great in- 
terest in Missouri. The fact that Blair, Lyons. Siegle and the 
Germans had held tin- State of Missouri in the Union against 
all the efforts of its Rebel Government, made il very interest- 
ing to him. and he had been endeavoring for a long time to 
bring it back under its own civil government. He assigned 
General Sehofield, a very tine soldier and executive officer, to 
the command of the department, with a view of his carrying 
nut this policy, but he had failed. General Schofield's policy 
did not ssatisfy either side, it was too conservative for the radi 
cals and too radical for the half-Union men: therefore the War 
Department relieved him. But President Lincoln believed in 
Genera] Sehofield and when he left there he made him a Ma.jor- 
General. but the State of Missouri was strong enough to stop 
his confirmation in the United States Senate and il was one 
year before he was confirmed. President Lincoln said he saw 
his opportunity when he received a dispatch from General 
Grant in 1864, asking to have General Sehofield sent to the 
command of the Department of the Ohio at Ivnoxville, Tennes 
see, and he said he then put the pressure right on the Senate 
and they had to come to time and confirm him. 

As soon as 1 had gotten well settled in the Department of 
the Missouri, President Lincoln wrote me a long letter. It was 
in no wise an order or a suggestion that I was obliged to carrv 



P ersonal Kecollections of Lincoln. 33 

out. It was simply his views of the conditions in the country; 
also what he thought, not what he thought I ought to do, and 
as I looked the country over I came to his views — that there 
was absolutely no necessity for any military forces in the 
State of Missouri. That state had just elected Colonel Fletcher 
Governor. Colonel Fletcher had been a good soldier in the 
service and I made up my mind that if it was in my power I 
would turn over the Civil Government entirely to him, but as 
soon as my policy was known, both sides were opposed to it ; 
one side because they were afraid of the guerrillas, and the 
other side because they did not want to go under a Union 
soldier as a Governor. I was in a great dilemma, and wrote 
the War Department that I had made up my mind to give it 
a trial, and sent to General Halleck at Washington my plan — 
that was, to withdraAv all the federal troops from the small 
towns and railroad lines and relieve them from all civil duties 
and concentrate them at the prominent strategic point in the 
state where I could handle them as a body, and call on the citi- 
zens of the counties to take care of themselves. I did not get 
a very hearty response from General Halleck. His response 
was something like this : "If you do this and succeed, all right ; 
but if you do this and fail, you must not charge any of it up 
to us." 

Before doing this, President Lincoln thought I should con- 
sult and get the consent of the Governor of the state ; this, I 
had expected to do. I had to struggle with the Governor quite 
a long time but he finally consented. He did not feel like as- 
suming the responsibility of enforcing the law without a large 
military force behind him. There were some eight or ten 
thousand State Militia that had been mustered into the United 
States Army for service in the state, and I proposed that this 
force should be used by the Governor to do the work which the 
federal troops had been performing. 

I issued an order that citizens of the state, of southern 



24 Personal Ki;cql lkctions of Lincoln. 

sentiment, must hereafter comply with the Civil Authorities, 
and those who could not or would not would be forced to leave 
the state. I gave them permission to go through the lines south 
or north. This order also provided that any citizens of the state 
who harbored a guerrilla, or where any of the bands of guer- 
rillas camped upon their land, or where they had any knowl- 
edge of any being present, must, within twenty-four hours, 
notify the nearest federal post. If they did not. they would 
be arrested and shot. This was a very drastic order and was 
complained of bitterly by the citizens of southern sentiment. 
A few days after the order was issued, a Lieutenant of one of 
the companies, discovered a citizen harboring some guerrillas 
and he took him out and shot him. This, of course, he had no 
authority to do. He should have arrested the man and re- 
ported the fact to the commanding officer and given him a 
trial, but the fact of the prompt execution of the order struck 
terror throughout the state, especially 1o those of southern 
sentiment, and they felt that their lives were not safe, and 
thousands of them emigrated immediately to Idaho and Mon- 
tana, while others who remained entered protests to the War 
Department, and there was a general complaint and denuncia- 
tion of the order. I was called upon immediately by the War 
Department for an explanation of this officer's acts. Before I 
had gotten the order, however, I had investigated the case and 
found that the party he had killed was without question 
guilty, and 1 wrote the War Department that, while it was a 
lack of judgment on the part of the officer — he thought lie 
had the right to kill the man immediately — still, it had been 
of great, benefit in bringing peace to the state, and I felt that 
it was not necessary to take any further action in the matter 
and assured them that it would not be repeated. It was won- 
derful how quickly the state quieted down and how many re- 
ports went into the different posts of guerrillas or partisan 
hands, or even people suspected, so that as soon as they Ton ml 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 25 

that they did not have the support of the southern sympathiz- 
ers and could not quarter upon them without being reported, 
they immediately left the state. 

These complaints, of course, finally reached President Lin- 
coln, but it was a long time after they occurred. In the mean- 
time Governor Fletcher, who was taking great satisfaction in 
the rapidity with which the state had been brought under 
Civil Government, had written a letter to President Lincoln 
stating that the order had had a wonderful effect, and that 
the state was then as quiet as any other state in the Union. 
Some of the members of ('ong'ress from Missouri called on 
President Lincoln, quite a long time after this occurred, and 
still demanded a repeal of the order, but President Lincoln 
showed them Governor Fletcher's letter and he said that, 
under the conditions, he would not interfere in the matter. 

Years afterwards when I went West, to the station oppo- 
site Boise on the Union Pacific Railroad, where they were in- 
vestigating the question of putting in some irrigation works. 
and while my car was standing on the siding, one day there 
came up from the Boise Valley a delegation of citizens, who 
loaded my car with fruit. I was absent and did not see them, 
but they told the station agent that they were citizens whom 
I had driven out of Missouri and that at one time they would 
have hung me if they could have gotten hold of me, hut now 
they were thankful for the movement, and brought me this 
fruit with their compliments. 

Within sixty days I had left the Department in perfect 
peace and had gone on to the plains to make the Indian cam- 
paigns. 

While I was in command of the State of Missouri, there was 
hardly a day passed but what I saw some evidence of Presi- 
dent Lincoln's kindness. The appeals that would go to him 
from the people whose sons or themselves were in trouble, 
would always have his attention and he would give them one 



3G Personal Recollections of Li ncoln. 

of his cards, with a little note written on the back to me, ask- 
ing if something could not be done for this person. He dis- 
liked to have anyone executed, shot or imprisoned. When I 
went into Missouri, I found the prisons full and over-flowing 
with prisoners of Avar and citizens who had been taken up for 
treason, etc. 1 therefore proposed to send them through the 
line or to release them, and I so notified the War Department. 
In my letter to them I said it was a good deal easier to fight 
them than to feed them, but they seemed to think that the 
policy that, had been maintained there of holding these citi- 
zens in prison should be continued. When the Indian cam- 
paigns began, some of these prisoners made known to me that 
they were willing to enlist in the army to go on the plains. I 
reported this to the War Department and received authority 
to organize five regiments known as the United States Volun- 
teers, known on the plains as the "Reconstructed Rebs." This 
emptied the prisons. Nearly all of the confederate prisoners 
of war were willing to enlist to fight Indians and only took 
the oath for that purpose, declining to take it to fight against 
their own people and we did not recpiire it of them. These 
regiments served up the Missouri River, in Minnesota against 
the Indians there, and were in my campaigns on the plains in 
1865 and 1866. They made splendid soldiers and endured 
great hardships. Afterwards a great many of them went down 
on the Union Pacific and into the States of Idaho and Mon- 
tana, where there are now a great many of the members of 
those regiments, many of whom are prominent citizens. 

The day before the assassination of President Lincoln, a 
lady called upon me who had been to Washington to see Pres- 
ident Lincoln. Her son had been arrested and tried for mur- 
der as a guerrilla. He had been in one of the guerrilla bands 
which had been caught, and it was proved that he had mur- 
dered two or three convalescent Union soldiers. He was sen 
tenced to be hung in a very short time. This lady obtained 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 2^ 

an interview with President Lincoln and, the night before the 
day of the assassination, she came to my office with the Pres- 
ident's card, with a little note on the back of it to me, which 
read, "My Dear General Dodge: Is it possible for you to do 
anything for this poor woman who is in so much trouble?" I 
took the card, but T did not see my way elear to comply with 
her request. If I had commuted the sentence of that guerrilla, 
after the great number of men who had been murdered b\ 
these guerrillas, it would have brought down upon me a great 
criticism from the Union people in the State. But I treated 
the lady nicely and told her that I would consider it. She 
thought that card was an absolute pardon for her son, and was 
very indignant, and said she would communicate with the 
President immediately. 

That night about midnight I received a dispatch from tin 1 
War Department notifying me of Lincoln being shot. I was 
also cautioned about making arrangements so that there would 
be no uprising in the State. They felt that such a tragedy 
might cause an uprising of the Union men against the citizens 
of southern sentiments on account of the bitterness existing 
there. I brought into the city of St. Louis such troops as 
were near, and issued an order suspending all business and 
ordered all the citizens, both Federal and Rebel, to remain in 
their houses and prohibited any gatherings or crowds on the 
streets. T found that the southern people were as greatly dis- 
tressed as those of the North. The streets of St. Louis were 
deserted for two days and there was nothing but sorrow ex- 
hibited on both sides. 

The lady called the next day and asked me for the card, 
she desiring to keep it as - r \ memento, and no doubt giving up 
all hopes for her son, but I did not have it in my heart, after 
Lincoln's death, to carry out the order of the court and there 
fore commuted the sentence to imprisonment. 

At the time of Lincoln's funeral T was ordered to so to 



38 Personal Eecollections of L incoln. 

Springfield with my staff and troops. I went to Springfield on 
the day of the funeral and took my position in the procession. 
It was the saddesl ^ight of my life. Those streets were lined 
with thousands and thousands of people, evidently in great dis- 
tress and sorrow, and at every step we could hear the sobs .of 
the sorrowing crowd and every little while a negro would come 
out and drop down on his knees and offer a prayer. There was 
hardly a person who was not in tears, and when T looked 
around at my troops I saw many of them in tears. As we paid 
the last rites to this great man the sorrow was universal, for 
it was one of the greatest calamities of this or any other na- 
tion. 

Among all the public men in the funeral procession, no 
grief was keener than that of his War Secretary. Edwin M. 
Stanton. None of them had tested, as had Edwin M. Stanton, 
the extraordinary resources of his strong Chief. It Avas fitting, 
therefore, that he as passed the strong heroic soul away. 
should pronounce its eulogy: "There lies the most perfect 
ruler of men the world has ever seen. Why the most per- 
fect rulei* the world has ever seen .' Because he was the per- 
fect ruler of himself." 

The following letter, that has never been published, shows 
Lincoln's ideas upon a subject that has often been discussed: 

Executive Mansion, 

„,. D .. Washington, Sept. 4, 1864. 

Eliza P. Gurney, ' 

My Esteemed Friend: — T have not forgotten — probably 
never shall forget — the very impressive occasion when yourself 
and friends visited me on a Sabbath afternoon two years ago. 
Nor has your kind letter, written nearly a year later, ever been 
forgotten. Tn all. it has been your purpose to strengthen my 
reliances on God. I am much indebted to the good Christian 
people of the country for their constant prayers and consola- 
tions, and to no one of them more than to yourself. The pur- 
poses of the Almighty are perfect and must prevail, though we 
erring mortals may fail tn accurately perceive them in advance. 
We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 2i» 

before this. bu1 God knows best and has ruled otherwise. We 
shall acknowledge Mis wisdom, and our own error therein. 
Meanwhile we must work earnestly in the best light He gives 
us. trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends 
He ordains. Surely He intends some great good to follow this 
mighty convulsion, which no mortal eould make and no mortal 
could stay. 

Your people — the Friends — have had, and we are having, a 
very great trial. On principle and faith, opposed to both war 
and oppression, they can only practically oppose oppression by 
war. In this hard dilemma some have chosen one horn and 
some the other. For those appealing to me on conscientious 
grounds, I have done, and shall do. the best I could and can in 
my own conscience under my oath to the Lord. That you 
believe this I doubt not. and believing it I shall still receive 
for our country and myself your earnest prayers to our Father 
in Heaven. 

Your Sincere Friend, 

A. LINCOLN. 

A more beautiful letter it would be impossible to write. 

When the second nomination of Lincoln was about to be 
made, the people who were dissatisfied and disgruntled at 
what he had done, many who thought he was not radical 
enough or aggressive enough in the war, called a convention to 
meel in Cleveland in May of 1864. 

The movement was supported by men of prominence in the 
party, dissatisfied and disappointed with the conducting of 
affairs, and their action caused much anxiety. This conven- 
tion nominated for President, John C. Fremont, and for Vice- 
President, John Cochran, and instead of there being thou- 
sands in attendance at the convention, as was expected, there 
were only about 400. 

A friend of Mr. Lincoln seeing this, hastened to the White 
House to impart it. Lincoln, thereupon, reached for his well 
thumbed Bible and opening it at First Samuel, 22; 2, read: 

And everyone that was in distress, and everyone that was 
in debt, and everyone that w r as discontented, gathered them- 
selves unto him and he became a Captain over them, and there 
were with him about four hundred 



30 Personal Recollections of Lincoln. 

Even the London Punch, that criticised and ridiculed Mr. 
Lincoln during his administration, changed, and after his 
death, said it was sorry and regretted its course, holding that 
it was a remarkable man who could indite in a car on a train, 
while on his trip to Gettysburg, that remarkable tribute so 
strong in English, so expressive, eloquent and sympathetic, and 
said that his Gettysburg speech had changed their whole course 
and opinion of Lincoln. 

Lincoln was a man of keen vision, of almost prophetic ken. 
He penetrated almost intuitively the thin veneer of patriotism 
which often covered pelf. He was not deceived by the 
wretched shams and pretexts behind which men, under the 
pretense of serving their country, sought upon to see, in all 
its naked deformity, the utter selfishness of self, and yet, not- 
withstanding it all. he believed, and rightly believed, that in 
the main and on the average the plain people wanted to he. 
intended to be, and were, right. 

With his trained reasoning faculties, he reached conclu- 
sions which were far in advance of the general thought of the 
people ; hence, in thought, in speech, in the discussion of great 
fundamental principles Lincoln was a radical; and yet in ad- 
ministration, in the discharge of executive duties, where he 
was called upon to act for others, he was a conservative. He 
said to Greeley, Chase and Stevens, and others of like fiery 
temper and spirit : 

You are theoretically right but practically wrong. If 1 am 

to lead these people I must not separate myself from them. 
Whatever my individual thoughts may be, whatever the logical 
conclusions of my mind, based upon the premises which I admit 
to be sound and true, nevertheless I must not separate myself 
from the people. Tf I am to lead, T must stay with the pro- 
cession. 

Lincoln embodied in the mind of the people two great 
issues that were really only one — the preservation of the Amer- 
ican Lnion and the abolition of slavery. At the root of both 



Personal Recollections of Lincoln. .51 



there, lay a moral principle and both appealed with overwhelm- 
ing force to sentiment. They were so plain, so vividly defined, 
that no sophistry could obscure them, no shrewd debater rea- 
son them away. And so, back of him were the masses of the 
people, their eyes fixed with pathetic faith and loyalty upon 
that tall, gaunt, stooping, homely man. who to their minds 
meant everything that makes a cause worth dying for. 

Lincoln's great ability, his pure administration, his kind 
but firm hand has disarmed all criticism, and today no one 
names him but in words of respect and love, and his name the 
world over, is coupled in the trinity— Washington. Lincoln 
and Orant. the creators and saviors of the Union. 




LIEUTENANT-GENERAL U. S. GRANT 
Photo Presented to General Dodge at City Point. October 1864 



PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
GENERAL U. S. GRANT 



As a soldier. General Grant stands first in all the history 
of warfare. As a citizen, his acts, his foresight, and his 
methods of meeting and settling all great questions, stamp him 
as the peer of the best statesmen that the world has produced. 
In fact, in the old world his statesmanship is considered equal 
to his great achievements as a soldier. As he came to be 
known only after he Avas forty years nld, the question naturally 
arises, was there anything in his boyhood or early manhood 
that indicated the abilities that were so rapidly developed 
during the Civil War? He says that as a boy he loved horses, 
not books, and worked on the farm, and that even the uniform 
of a soldier had no attractions for him; that he was an indif- 
ferent scholar, and that he preferred to read a novel than 
study his lessons ; that his great desire was to travel and see 
our country, and when he was appointed to "West Point the 
only inducement for him to accept was the disgrace it would 
bring upon him to decline after his father had asked for the 
appointment ; and, finally, he was reconciled to it because it 
would enable him to see Philadelphia and New York, and 
that his long stay in those cities, instead of repairing prompt- 
ly to West Point, brought a sharp reminder from his father. 

At West Point Grant was an indifferent scholar, had a 
positive dislike to anything military, and neglected his studies. 
After he graduated he remained in the army hoping to be pro- 
fessor at West Point rather than an officer in the field. He 
considered the Mexican war an unholy one. He says : 

I regarded the' war as one of the most unjust ever urged 
by a stronger against a weaker nation, from the inception of 
the movement to its final consummation — a conspiracy to ac- 



34 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

quire territory out of which slave states might be formed for 
the American nation. The Southern Rebellion was the out- 
growth of the Mexican war. 

Tie joined General Taylor's! command on the Rio Grande, 
and. although acting as Quartermaster, he took part in nearly 
all of the battles of the Mexican war. He says: 

At the Battle of Monterey, my curiosity got the better of 
my judgment, and 1 mounted a horse and rode To the front to 
see what was going on. T had been there but a short time 
when the order to charge was given, and lacking the courage 
to return to camp, where T had been ordered to stay, T charged 
with the regiment. 

He evidently took in the tactics, logistics and strategy, and 
sometimes criticised them. In one or two of the fights near 
the City of Mexico he thought the enemy could have been 
driven out by flank movements, without the great losses in 
front attacks on the enemy's strong positions. At the gates 
of Mexico he developed some of those wonderful qualities that 
were so prominent in the Civil War, when he took his little 
squad of men to flank the Mexican troops out of their position 
at the Garita San Cosma, and caused the fall of the City of 
Mexico, and received the commendation of the commanding 
officer, and was brevetted. 

After this campaign in the Mexican war he seemed less in- 
clined than ever to follow the army permanently, and soon re- 
signed and returned to civil life. 

General Grant entered the service in the Civil War as 
Colonel of the Twenty-first Illinois Infantry, and brought the 
regiment to great efficiency. He was sent to Northern Mis- 
souri. His first order was to march against Colonel Harris. 
who had a rebel regiment near the town of Florida. General 
Grant says : 

As we approached the brow of the hill from which it was 
expected we could see Harris' camp, and probably find his 
men ready formed t<> meet us, my heart kept irettinq: higher 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 35 

and higher until it felt to me as though it was in my throat, 
i would have given anything then to have been back in Illinois, 
but T had not the moral courage to halt and consider what to 
do. J kept right on, and when I found that Harris had left, 
it occurred to me at once that Harris had been as much afraid 
of me as I had been of him. This was a view of the matter I 
had never taken, and it was one I never forgot afterwards. 
From that event to the close of the. Avar T never experienced 
trepidation upon confronting the enemy, although I always 
felt more or less anxiety. T never forgot that the enemy had 
as much reason to fear my force as I had his. The lesson was 
a valuable one. 

BELMONT. 
From North Missouri he was sent to Southeast Missouri, 
and was then made a Brigadier-General, and ordered to Cairo. 
Ilis first important battle was Belmont, brought about by his 
movement to threaten Columbus. His orders were to make 
a demonstration against the Confederate force at or near Co- 
lumbus, Kentucky, to prevent their sending reinforcements to 
a Confederate command that a Federal force had been sent 
to attack on the St. Francis River. Grant had no intention of 
fighting a battle when he started out for Belmont. His orders 
did not contemplate an attack, but after he started he says 
that he saAv that the officers and men were elated at the pros- 
pect of doing what they volunteered to do — fight the enemies 
of their country — and he did not see how he could maintain 
discipline or the confidence of his command if he returned to 
Cairo without an attempt 1o do something. This battle first 
brought the country's attention to Grant. He displayed that 
confidence, good judgment and self-reliance that afterwards 
became so conspicuous. 

FORT HENRY AND DONELSON. 
General Grant was ordered soon after Belmont to make 
a demonstration up the Tennessee River, and towards Colum- 
bus, Kentucky, with a view of holding the Confederate forces 
there while the campaign around Bowling Green was proceed- 



36 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

ing. In this movement General C. F. Smith reported that 
Port Heineman, opposite Port Henry on the Tennessee River. 
eould be captured. Grant believed the true line of operation 
for his force was by the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, 
and asked permission to visit St. Louis and lay the plan before 
General Halleck, but says : 

I was received with so little cordiality that I perhaps 
stated the subject of my visit with less clearness than I might 
have done, and I had not uttered many sentences before 1 
was cut short as if my plan was preposterous, and T returned 
to Cairo very mueh crestfallen. 

On his return he consulted Plag Officer Foote, who com- 
tnanded the gunboat fleet mi the Mississippi River, and he 
agreed with Grant, and notwithstanding his rebuff, Grant re- 
newed the suggestion, and on January 28th, wrote General 
Halleck fully in regard to his plans. On the 1st of February 
General Grant received instructions from General Halleck. go- 
ing fully into every detail, lo march upon and capture Fort 
Henry. On the 2d the expedition was started; on the 6th Fort 
Henry was captured, and Grant wired Halleck that on the 8th 
he would move on Port Donelson, not even waiting for orders 
to do so. On February 16th. L862, Fort Donelson surrendered 
to him with its entire force. Grant, in this battle, displayed 
the tactics which were ever in his mind — that when the enemy 

attacked, to also attack on son ther portion of the line, and 

when the enemy attacked and turned his right he immediately 
attacked and turned the enemy's right, and carried their in- 
trenchments, forcing the final surrender. 

In writing Mrs. Grant of the capture of Forts Henry and 
Donelson, he says : 

These terrible hattles are very good things to read about 
tor persons who lose no friends, but I am decidedly in favor 
of having as little of i1 as possible. The way to avoid it is to 
push forward as vigorously as possible. 



Personal Recollections op Grant. 37 

After Forts Henry and Donelson had been taken General 
Grant started to carry out this program, and visited Clarks- 
ville and Nashville. Because General Halleck. his command- 
ing officer, did not receive prompt reports from General 
Grant, he issued this order: 

You will place Major-General C. F. Smith in command of 
expedition and remain yourself at Fori Henry. Why do you 
not obey my orders and report strength and position of your 
command ? 

Up to this time Grant had not received one word from 
Halleck, and all his reports sent to Halleck went to the end of 
the telegraph line, where the operator was a rebel, who de- 
serted and took all these dispatches with him. Ruel, Halleck 
and McClellan all seemed demoralized by Grant's great vic- 
tories. They, looking for the enemy to recover, while Grant 
thought of nothing but their demoralization, and the desire to 
follow them. Grant, on the ground, was the only person who 
saw the situation, and had any power to take advantage of it. 
The rebels, in their consternation, abandoned everything as 
fast as possible, and even evacuated Chattanooga, three hun- 
dred miles away. 

When Halleck got into communication with Grant he in- 
formed him thai he was advised to arrest him because he went 
to Nashville, a point within his own command, and no one 
could hear from him. They could not trust the man who 
within thirty days had broken through the entire rebel line, 
driven their forces beyond the Tennessee, and captured their 
fortified places and all the troops in them. In writing of this 
to his wife, General Grant says: 

All the slanders you have seen against me originated 
away from where T was. The only foundation was from the 
fact that I was ordered to remain at Fort Henry and send the 
expedition up the Tennessee River under the command of 
Major-General C. F. Smith. This was ordered because General 
Halleck received no report from me for near two weeks after 



38 Personal Recollections of Gkant. 

the fall of Fort Donelson. The same occurred with me; I re- 
ceived nothing from him. The consequence was I was appar- 
ently totally disregarding his orders. The fact was he was 
ordering me every day to report the condition of my command. 
T was not receiving the orders, but knowing my duties, was 
reporting daily, and when anything occurred to make it neces- 
sary, two or three times a day. When I was ordered to re- 
main behind it was the cause of much astonishment among 
the troops of my command, and also disappointment. When 
I was again ordered to join them they showed. I believe, heart- 
felt joy. I never allowed a word of contradiction to go out 
from my headquarters, thinking this the best course. I know, 
though I do not like to speak of myself, that General Halleck 
would regard this army badly off if T was relieved. Not but 
what there are Generals with it abundantly able to command, 
but because it would leave inexperienced officers senior in 
rank. You need not fear but what T will come out triumphant- 
ly. T am pulling no wires, as political Generals do, to advance 
myself. T have no future ambition. My object is to carry on 
my part of this war successfully, and T am perfectly willing 
that others may make all the glory they can out of it. 

General MeClellan, on Halleck's representations, ordered 

that Grant should be relieved from duty and an investigation 
made. lie even authorized Grant's arrest; lids within two 
weeks of his great victory that electrified the country. Grant's 
explanation of delays in receiving dispatches, his visit to Nash- 
ville, etc., reached Halleck, and Grant was restored to his 
command on March 13th, Halleck claiming his explanation to 
Washington had exhonorated Grant, but he did not inform 
Grant that his whole trouble came from his (Halleck's) mis- 
leading reports to Washington. 

Grant proceeded immediately to Savannah, Tennessee. 
where he found General C. F. Smith in command, sick, and he 
soon died. 

General Grant says of the condition of the South after the 
fall of Donelson : 

That his opinion was and still is that the way was open 
for the National forces to occupy any part of the Southwest 
\vithoii1 much resistance. If one General was in command of 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 39 

all the forces west of the Alleghanies, who would have taken 
the responsibility, he could have moved to Chattanooga, Mem- 
phis, Corinth and Vicksburg, and with the troops pouring in 
from the North he could have kept all these places, leaving 
his army to operate against any body of the enemy that could 
have been concentrated in his front. Rapid movements, with 
the occupation of the enemy's territory, would have discour- 
aged a large number of young men who had gone from that 
territory into the rebel army, and brought them home, and 
we would have permanently held that territory that cost so 
many lives to conquer later, but our delays gave courage to 
the enemy, and they collected new armies, fortified their posi- 
tions, and twice afterwards came near making their line on 
the Ohio River. 

SHILOH. 

No campaign or battle of Grant's has received such unjust 
and severe criticism as the Battle of Shiloh, but as we now 
read the official reports of that battle, we see that at night 
on the first day of the battle Grant was master of the field, 
with Wallace's Division of 12,000 fresh troops that had not 
fired a gun ; that the enemy were exhausted and demoralized, 
and had no reinforcements; and, as Grant claims, he would 
have wiped them out the second day without the aid of Buel. 
The fact is, from the very moment of the attack on the second 
morning, Beauregard, who was in command after the death of 
Albert Sidney Johnston, commenced retreating, and fell back 
to Corinth, and Grant, if he had not been restrained by orders, 
would within a week have had his forces facing Corinth, less 
than twenty miles away. The one mistake made by General 
C. F. Smith, which Grant had not rectified at Shiloh, was in 
not intrenching their forces as they arrived from day to day, 
on the general line of defense. Grant admits this, but says as 
it was his purpose to proceed immediately against the enemy 
at Corinth he did not think it necessary, and it never entered 
his mind that the enemy would attack him. Besides, these 
troops were mostly green and needed drilling and discipline 
more than they did experience with pick and shovel, and Grant 



40 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

also says that there was no hour during the day when he 
doubted the eventual defeat of the enemy. 

In the first day's battle the forces on each side were about 
equal. Grant says that up to Shiloh he believed the Rebellion 
would collapse suddenly as soon as a decisive victory could be 
gained, and after such victories as the capture of Donelson, 
the fall of Bowling Green, Nashville (with its immense amount 
of stores). Columbia. Hickman, opening the Tennessee and 
Cumberland from the mouth to head, he believed peace would 
come. After this, when Confederate armies collected, and new 
lines of defenses from Chattanooga to Corinth and Knoxville, 
and on to the Atlantic, were formed, and they took the offen- 
sive, he gave up all idea of saving the Union except by com- 
plete conquest. Up to this time he had protected property and 
citizens. After this he pursued the plan of consuming and de- 
stroying everything that could be used to support and supply 
armies, and this policy he pursued to the end of the war. 

Grant never made a report of the Battle of Shiloh, as 
Buel, who commanded the Army of the Ohio, refused to make 
reports to him. A few days after the battle General Halleck 
arrived at Pittsburg Landing and assumed command, Grant 
being placed as second in command, and ignored. Halleck 
had three armies — the Ohio, Buel commanding; the Army of 
the Mississippi, Pope commanding; and the Army of the Ten- 
nessee, Grant's old command, to which General George H. 
Thomas was assigned to the command. There was no time 
after the Battle of Shiloh but what the enemy would have re- 
treated from Corinth had a movement been made against it. 
Beauregard had about 50,000 men in Corinth, while against him 
were 120,000, and any of the three armies could have planted 
itself on his communications and forced him to fight in the open 
or retreat. Grant suggested to Halleck such a move by the left, 
but says he was silenced so quickly that he thought possibly 
he had suggested an unmilitary movement. Logan, who com- 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 41 

manded a Brigade on the extreme left, on the 28th of May 
told Grant the enemy had been evacuating several days, and 
if they would let him he could go into Corinth with his Bri- 
gade. Beauregard published his orders and evacuated on the 
26th of May and our army entered on the 30th, the enemy not 
leaving a thing, not even a sick or wounded soldier. Even 
after they had left, Halleck issued orders on the 30th of May 
for a battle, and had his whole army drawn up in line to 
meet the enemy. The army was greatly disappointed at the 
result. Grant says he was satisfied that Corinth could have 
been captured in a two days' campaign made immediately 
after Shiloh, without any additional reinforcements, and that 
after Corinth they had a movable force of 80,000 men, be- 
sides sufficient force for holding all territory acquired in any 
campaign. New Orleans and Baton Rouge were ours, and the 
enemy had only a single line of railroad from Vicksburg to 
Richmond, and in one move we had the opportunity to occupy 
Vicksburg and Atlanta without much opposition. But we 
continued to pursue the policy of distributing this great army, 
and for nearly a year accomplished no great results from it. 
giving up the territory back to Nashville, holding only the 
line from the Tennessee River to Memphis: 

General Grant's position at Corinth, with a nominal com- 
mand, became so unbearable that he asked permission of Hal- 
leck to move his headquarters to Memphis. He had repeatedly 
asked to be relieved from command under Halleck, but Sher- 
man prevailed on him to remain. On June 21, 1862, he moved 
to Memphis. On July 11th, Halleck Avas placed in command 
of all the armies at Washington, and Grant returned to 
Corinth, and in July, 1862, was given only the command of 
the District of the West Tennessee, which embraced West Ten- 
nessee and Kentucky west of the Cumberland. 

As one reads the reports and makes comparisons — first, 
Grant fighting at every opportunity, winning every battle, 






42 Persoxal Eecollections of Gkant. 

pleading to move on the enemy after every battle, but stopped, 
humiliated after each campaign, and finally when given a com- 
mand only allowed a district, while on the other hand Hal- 
leck, who had not fought a battle, who took fifty-five days or 
more, with three men to the enemy's one, to make twenty 
miles, which, by a sample flank movement, could have been ac- 
complished in two days, with one of the best opportunities of 
the war to capture or destroy an army of 50,000 men, who pre- 
vented Grant from reaping the full benefit of every battle he 
fought, was brought to Washington and given full command 
of all the armies, while Grant was not even allowed to resume 
command of the department Halleck vacated- the record is 
most astonishing. Halleck had no confidence in Grant. The 
officers in the field looked on in amazement, and wondered what 
the powers in Washington could be thinking of. Grant ac- 
cepted whatever was given him, never making a word of pro- 
test or complaint. He was now again in position to commence 
moving on the enemy, and although Halleck "s great army 
had been distributed, Grant had left in his command 50,000 
troops, and commenced preparing for another movement, not 
even suggesting that more force be sent him. There was fac- 
ing him an army of about 40,000 men under Van Dorn, and 
Grant, with his numerous posts and large territory, could not 
muster more than 20,000 men for an aggressive army. He says 
that his most anxious period during the war was the time 
that he was guarding all this territory until he was reinforced 
and took the aggressive. 

On August 2d, 1862, Grant was ordered to live upon the 
country, upon the resources of citizens hostile to the Govern- 
ment; to handle rebels within our lines without gloves, im- 
poverish them, and expel them from our lines. Grant did not 
see the necessity (it' this, and says he does not recollect hav- 
ing arrested or imprisoned a citizen during the entire Kebel- 
lion. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. ±3 

During this time, with his inferior force, Grant sent two 
Divisions to Buel and one to Rosecrans at Corinth. 

IUKA AND CORINTH 

Van Dora, who commanded the rebel army in Grant's 
front, soon saw how small a force Grant had, and decided to 
attack him. He brought Price's army across the Mississippi 
River, and both combined and moved on Grant's lines. Grant 
moved to Jackson himself so he could be in close touch with 
his force, and where, by the railway from Jackson to Grand 
Junction and Jackson to Corinth, he could reinforce the point 
attacked more readily. Price immediately moved on Iuka. 
and Grant saw a chance to defeat and capture him, and went 
himself immediately to Glendale. sending Rosecrans' force 
from Corinth to the rear of Price, and General Ord to head 
him off. A portion of Rosecrans' force fought Price near Inka. 
but General Ord did not know or hear of the battle, although 
the order was. if either force was attacked, to notify the other. 
Tli ere were two roads leading out of Iuka to the South, and 
Rosecrans was ordered to take possession of both, but failed 
to occupy the easterly one, and during the night Price re- 
treated on this road, avoiding both Rosecrans and Ord. Van 
Dorn and Price combined their forces southwest of Corinth, 
and moved immediately on that place. As soon as Grant as- 
certained this, he ordered. Hurlbut with all the force he had 
to move from Memphis and get in Van Dorn's rear, and started 
McPherson with a Division from Jackson to reinforce Rose- 
erans. Van Dorn commenced his attack on Corinth on Octo- 
ber 2d. Rosecrans had pushed his second Division out nearly 
three miles from Corinth, and allowed the attack to fall upon 
this Division, which was steadily pushed back during the day 
until it finally reached the inside works at Corinth, fighting 
very gallantly at every line of defense. On the second day. Van 
Dorn and Price had Corinth partially invested, and a very 



44 Personal Reco llections of Grant. 

severe battle ensued, both sides fighting with great gallantry 
and great loss. Price and Van Dorn were completely defeated, 
and their army retreated greatly demoralized, and should 
have been relentlessly followed and their trains and artillery 
captured, and although Grant urged this in a dispatch, for some 
reason there were delays, and when the troops did follow they 
took the wrong road, which enabled the enemy to escape, al- 
though Hurlbut's and Ord's forces captured portions of their 
trains and artillery. 

Grant criticises Rosecrans severely for his movements in 
these battles, and censures him for failing to capture Price at 
luka, and to follow Van Dorn after Corinth. There were 
many protests from Generals McPherson, Hurlbut, and other 
officers, who were ordered to aid Rosecrans in these battles, 
and these protests especially related to his reports. Rose- 
crans denounced the action of the second Division, which held 
the center at Corinth, as cowardly. It was the Division Grant 
had organized at Cairo, that fought at Belmont and carried 
the lines at Donelson, and the}' showed themselves veterans 
at Corinth, because when they were broken through they ral- 
lied and retook the line. 

Mrs. Grant, who was present with General Grant at Jack- 
son, stated that these officers appealed to her in the matter, 
and in her talk with General Grant he was disinclined to re- 
lieve Rosecrans. While the matter was under discussion, on 
the 23d of October, 3862, the War Department assigned Rose- 
crans to the command of the Army of the Cumberland. Mrs. 
Grant says that when Grant received the dispatch he came out 
of his tent holding it in his hands, and declaring that his great- 
est trouble had been solved, ({rant says in relation to Rosecrans 
that as a subordinate he found he could not make him do as 
he wished, and had finally determined to relieve him from 
duty if he had not received this assignment, and that he was 
greatly pleased at his being assigned to the command of the 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 45 



Army of the Cumberland, believing that perhaps in such a 
position he would be more efficient and useful than he was as 
a subordinate. 

Grant, up to this time, had only been commanding the Dis- 
trict of the Tennessee, but had in his command 50,000 men. 
The authorities in Washington still seemed disinclined to give 
him the command he was entitled to, but on the 25th of Octo- 
ber, 1862. he was placed in command of the Army and Depart- 
ment of the Tennessee. 

At the time of the Battle of Corinth I was in command of 
the Fourth Division. District of West Tennessee, and was re- 
building the railway from Columbus to Corinth. T had just 
made the connection at Humboldt, and had been several days 
at the front giving personal attention to the work. I received 
a dispatch from General Quimby, my commanding officer, di- 
recting me to report immediately at Corinth for orders. I was 
away from my own headquarters in a working (undress) suit; 
had nothing with me, and hesitated about going as I was, but 
I concluded it was best to report, so took the train, and at 
Jackson, Tennessee, Colonel John A. Rawlins, whom I had 
never seen, came onto the train and asked if T was on board 
T made myself known to him, and he informed me that Gen- 
eral Grant was out on the platform and desired to see me. I 
apologized to Colonel Rawlins, stating that I was not in prop- 
er dress for presenting myself to the commanding officer. He 
saw my predicament and said: "Oh, we know all about you. 
don't mind that." I stepped out on The platform. General 
Grant met me. shook my hand cordially, and spoke very ap- 
provingly of what 1 had done, and I then saw that he was no 
Letter dressed than 1 was, which greatly relieved me. In a 
few words General Grant informed me that he had assigned 
me to the command of the Second Division of the Army of 
the Tennessee at Corinth, and quietly but with a determina- 
tion that struck me so forcibly that I could make no answer. 



40 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

said: "•And J want you to understand you are not gointz to 
command a Division of cowards." 

T stammered out something:, I know not what, and tried to 
thank him, bu1 had do comprehension of what he meant, as 1 
had heard nothing against the Division; but when I arrived 
at Corinth and assumed command, relieving General Davies. 
I found that in the Battle of Corinth, on the second day, the 
Division had been formed on the north side of the town, and 
that a Brigade and a Battery to the east of them had been 
seized with panic, breaking through their ranks and carrying 
a portion of one Brigade into the town. The Division, how- 
ever, held its organization intact, and regained all lost ground-, 
really saving the day. 

General Rosecrans, in his official report of the Battle of 
Corinth, had branded the men as cowards, and General Grant 
had disapproved his actions and comments. The Division won 
imperishable renown. Cpon their banner was inscribed, "First 
at Donelson.'' and from that time until after the Atlanta Cam- 
paign they served directly under me. From Corinth to the 
end of the war they took no step backward. Their great bat- 
tle of Atlanta, where they helped to hold a whole Corps of 
Hood's army, and afterwards Altoona, when, under General 
Corse they held that strategic point against the terrific on- 
slaughts of four times their numbers, gave me cause to always 
remember the words of General Grant — thai I was not as- 
signed to command a Division of cowards. The correspond- 
ence which follows shows how unjust Rosecran's charges were. 

lld<irs. Second Div., Army of West Tennessee, 
Corinth. Miss.. Oct. 23, 1862. 
Major-General Rosecrans: 

Sir:— On Ihe afternoon of October 4th, after the victories 
of that day and of the 3d, you said upon the battlefield, among 
i lie piles of the dead and groans of the wounded slain by the 
Second Division, Army of the "West Tennessee, that they were 
a set of cowards: that they never should have any military 



Personal Recollections of Grant. f5 

standing in your army lill they had won it on the field of bat- 
tle; that they had disgraced themselves, and no wonder the 
rebel army had thrown its whole force upon it during the two 
days' engagement. 

My report is now before yon. The effed of the official an- 
nouncement which you have made is having a very demoraliz- 
ing effect upon the brave men and working injury to them 
throughout the country. It has been the basis of newspaper 
articles and of strictures upon the military conduct of the 
Division. I would most respectfully ask, for the benefit of the 
service, and for the honor of the Division, that if you have 
changed your opinions you would publicly give a refutation 
to these charges. 

1 am, very respectfully. 

Your obedient servant, 
THOMAS A. DA VIES. 

Hdqrs. Army of the Miss., 

Third Division, Dist. West Tennessee. 
General Davies : 

General:— In reply to your note, just received, 1 would say 
that having read your very clear and creditable report of the 
operations of your Division. T am satisfied they fought very 
nobly on the first day, and so much so that I shall overlook 
the cowardly stampeding of those under my immediate obser- 
vation on the second day, which gave rise to the public indig- 
nation I expressed in your presence and in theirs. Assure the 
brave officers and men of your Division that I will endeavor 
to do them public and ample justice, which will be move than 
all the newspaper talk to their disparagement. You will oblige 
me by making this letter knOwn to the command, and you may 
use it publicly if you wish while waiting my official report. 

W. S. ROSECRANS, Major-General. 

When General Grant, in the winter of 1862-63, obtained 
permission to make his first move on Vieksburg and Pember- 
ton's army, he notified me that General Wallace would relieve 
me and 1 would be given a command in his army, but the de- 
feat of this first movement changed the entire plan. 

VICKSBURG. 
Grant's first campaign against Vieksburg was for Sherman, 
with thirty thousand men. to go down the Mississippi River 
by boat and attack Vieksburg from the Yazoo side, while he 



48 Personal Recollections oe Grant. 

(Grant) attacked Pemberton and his army, then at Granada, 
and if Pemberton retreated, follow him to the gates of Vieks- 
burg. General J. E. Johnston soon saw the danger of this 
combined attack of Grant and Sherman on Vieksburg, and im- 
mediately ordered a movement of General Van Dorn and all 
his cavalry, together with the forces of Generals Jackson and 
Forest from Middle Tennessee, upon Grant's communications, 
to force the abandonment of Grant's advance. 

At the same time the force I commanded at Corinth was 
to move down the Mobile & Ohio Railroad towards Meridian 
for. the purpose of protecting that flank and hold what force 
1 could in my front. On December 9th Grant wired me thai 
Jackson's cavalry, some 3,000 men he thought, was starting 
to my rear; and again on December 18th, to take such force 
as could be spared and with troops at Jackson and in the 
field attack Forest and drive him across the Tennessee River. 
This I did, and by January 7th Forest had been driven across 
the Tennessee, and Jackson had been driven south of the 
Tallehatchie, and T reported by the following dispatch : 

Corinth, Jan. 7, 1862. 
Had gun-boats come up the river at the time I sent for 
them, or had General Davis been allowed to come with even a 
transport and a piece or two of 'artillery and destroyed the 
Hats, we should have captured the rebel force (Forest's) on 
this side of the river. As it was they had several hard knocks 
before they escaped. Captured four cannon and six hundred 
prisoners. 

Van Dorn attacked Holly Springs on the 20th of Decem- 
ber, where were stored all of Grant's supplies. Colonel Mur- 
phey. who commanded this point, and had plenty of troops to 
defend it, surrendered without firing a gun. This combina- 
tion of Johnston's, and the surrender of Holly Springs forced 
Granl to retreat to the line of the Memphis & Charleston Rail- 
road, and allowed Pemberton to move to Vieksburg and defeat 
Sherman's attack upon that point. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 49 

This is the first, and, I believe, only case where a campaign 
was defeated and two separate armies forced to retreat by a 
cavalry raid, one going down the Mississippi to Vicksburg, 
and the other towards Vicksburg by land, by way of Granada, 
and was the first time Grant abandoned a campaign. As he 
fell back he lived off the country, and finding his army was 
so easily fed he said that if he had had the experience before 
he would have let his base of supplies go, and push on to 
Vicksburg, living off the country, holding or defeating Pem- 
berton, and preventing him from reaching Vicksburg before 
Sherman could have taken it. After this time Grant and all 
the armies he commanded followed this policy, obtaining their 
rations by living off the country when necessary. Especially 
was this the case in his campaign in the rear of Vicksburg, 
which immediately followed after the defeat at Holly Springs. 

After the defeat of Sherman and the loss of Holly Springs, 
Grant determined to move his whole army down the Missis- 
sippi River, leaving me in command at Corinth to cover his 
left flank, and preventing any portion of Bragg 's army from 
reaching the Mississippi River, or, in fact, making a lodgment 
west of the Tennessee River. This virtually left me with the 
east and south, facing the Confederate forces. 

Soon after I took command at Corinth, I received a letter 
from Senator James W. Grimes of my own state, inquiring 
particularly as to the condition of our Army, and also about 
General Grant, and I wrote the Senator a very long letter, go- 
ing into detail about the condition and giving him the army's 
view of General Grant, which was unanimously in favor of 
him. They considered him the best commander they had ever 
been under, and I complained of the treatment General Grant 
was receiving from the War Department. He had been placed 
in command of the District of "West Tennessee with about 
50,000 men to take care of that country, while with General 
Halleck it was considered necessary to have over 100,000 men. 



50 Personal Kecollections of Grant. 

And with this small force General Grant had maintained his 
line of communication, had fought and won the battles of 
Corinth and Iuka, and was at that time moving against Price 
and Pemberton, who were known to be superior in force to 
General Grant. General Grant told me that this was the most 
anxious time of his service. 
_^ When Senaloi' Grimes received this letter he was so pleased 
Avith it that he immediately gave it to Mr. Fourney, the edi- 
tor of the Philadelphia Press, who printed it, and it received 
considerable comment. 

Prom the beginning of the war I had made considerable 
use of spies and scouts within the enemy's lines, and had ob- 
tained a very reliable force, mostly Southern men living in 
Northern Alabama and Mississippi. They had relatives en- 
listed in the First Alabama Cavalry, a regiment I raised while 
in command at Corinth. These scouts were instructed how to 
obtain the number of troops in any command, company, regi- 
ment, brigade, division or corps, and I placed them at Chat- 
tanooga, Atlanta, Selma, Montgomery, Mobile, Meridian, 
Jackson and Vicksburg, for the purpose of watching the move- 
ments of the enemy, and especially to report any force that 
should move towards Vicksburg, and, after Vicksburg was in- 
vested, to report the force sent to Johnston, who was moving 
an army to relieve Vicksburg. It is a singular fact that from 
their reports Grant was notified of every movement in his 
rear, and he ordered reinforcements from the North, of as 
many men as were sent to Johnston, and placed them 
under Sherman on the Big Black, ready to meet Johnston. 

These secret-service men never gave a larger force than 
30,000 men with Johnston, which was about the size of John- 
ston's army. These spies never left their stations. They com- 
municated with me through their relatives, often through their 
wives, who would come into Corinth to see their relatives in the 
Alabama Cavalry, and thus throw off suspicion. In one or two 
ra,ses of emergency they reported directly to Grant. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. .~>i 

General Frederick D. Grant tells of one who reported to 
General Grant on the morning of the Battle of Champion Hill, 
giving General Grant, General Johnston's position and force, 
and General Grant said he could attack and defeat Pemberton 
and reach Vicksburg before General Johnston conld aid or rein- 
force Pemberton. General Grant acted on their information, 
and speaks of it in his dispatches and Memoirs, and as I take 
the Rebellion Records and read my dispatches to Hurlbut at 
Memphis, who sent them by boat to Grant, I am surprised at 
the accuracy of the reports of these scouts. Of course they 
were often detected and lost their lives, but there were always 
others ready to take their places. 

I was furnished, by order of Grant, with all the money I 
needed, and t noticed one case where I had used $22,000 that 
was turned over to me by a Quartermaster. He demanded or- 
iginal vouchers which it was impossible for me to give, as the 
scouts would not sign any voucher, and he would not take a 
simple statement that I had expended the money for the serv- 
ice. I explained this to General Grant, and he sent me this 
order : 

Vicksburg, Feb. 26, 1863. 
General Dodge : — The Provost Marshals in your district will 
turn over to you all moneys collected by them under existing 
orders, taking your receipt therefor, which they will forward 
to the Provost Marshal General in settlement of their account 
in lieu of money, and which you will account for as secret-serv- 
ice funds. Any additional funds you may require can be ob- 
tained by requisition on the Provost Marshal General. All sales 
of cotton confiscated should be made by Captain Eddy, at Mem- 
phis, Tennessee, and properly accounted for by him. . 

Some of these scouts are still alive, and I often hear from 
them. Wherever I was in command you will find the records 
full of dispatches from me giving information to my superior 
officers that the scouts brought or sent to me. When these 
scouts were captured it was our endeavor to have them treated 
as prisoners of war, and the same was the case with the Con- 



52 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

federates, but whenever we captured one of theirs they would 
make a demand which, if not complied with, was usually fol- 
lowed by a threat. Our method of treating such occurrences 
is indicated by the following communication which I sent 
Colonel Wood : 

Corinth, Apr. 3, 1863. 
Colonel Wood : 

Your communication of April 1st. by flag of truce, arrived 
at my lines today, and in answer. I have to say that James 
Neill is held by us as a prisoner of war, and treated as such. 
How you obtained such information, I am unable to surmise, 
as there is no foundation in fact for it. Your threat to hang 
two men for one is given its proper weight. Our Government 
never hangs men without good and sufficient cause (T wish T 
could say the same of yours), and when it decides upon hang- 
ing men the threats of Confederate officers count nothing. We 
have no fears of the old story of retaliation. 

THE VICKSBURG CAMPAIGN. 

As soon as Grant moved down the Mississippi, and placed 
his army on the levees, he had determined in his own mind 
that bold campaign to the south and rear of Vicksburg. Know- 
ing he could not make it until the waters fell in April and 
May, he utilized the time and kept his troops busy in several 
plans for passing Vicksburg, or by using the Yazoo tributaries 
to make a landing to the north and east of Vicksburg. He 
had very little faith in these projects, although they tended 
to confuse the enemy and mislead them as to his real plan of 
campaign. He kept his own counsel as to his plan, knowing 
it would receive no support in Washington, but probably draw 
forth an order prohibiting it. and also receive criticism from 
all military sources, as the plan was an absolute violation of 
all the rules and practices of war, as it virtually placed his 
entire command at the mercy of the enemy, cutting loose from 
all the bases of support and supply, and that he must take with 
him all the rations and ammunition he would use in the cam- 
paign. Nevertheless, he never hesitated, though urged to 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 



abandon it by Sherman, and all of his ablest Generals. Grant 
says he was induced to adopt the plan first, on account of the 
political situation, which was threatening, the anti-war element 
hoping to carry the elections, and the Confederates were forc- 
ing our troops as far or further north than they were when the 
war commenced; that to abandon his campaign and return to 
Memphis, the nearest point from which he could make the cam- 
paign by land and have a base and railroad from it, would be 
very disheartening to the Government and the people. 

Grant ran the batteries and landed Ins forces on the east side 
of the Mississippi, and faced the enemy with less men than they 
had, and in the entire campaign, when he planted himself in the 
rear of Vicksburg, had only 43,000 men while the enemy had 
60,000. In comparison as to boldness, the total ignoring of all 
former practices of warfare, the accepting of the probability of 
Dine chances of failure to one of success, this campaign has 
never been approached in its originality and the wonderful 
grasp of its possibilities and great fighting success. Viewing it 
from this standpoint, it cannot be compared to any other 
known campaign. After Yicksburg the Confederacy was 
doomed, and Gettysburg coming at the same time, lifted the 
nation from the slough of despondency to the highest point of 
hope, enthusiasm, and certainty of success. 

As soon as this campaign was over Grant wished to move 
immediately on Mobile, but that fatal policy that had formerly 
scattered a great army and relieved Grant of his command, 
was renewed here. He lay quiet, his great abilities unutilized, 
until the disaster at Chicamauga forced the Government to 
again use him to retrieve our misfortunes, and again snatch 
victory out of a threatening great disaster. 

1 will give you an object lesson which shows Grant's idea 
of duty. While 1 was stationed at Corinth, looking after that 
flank of the army, Grant hammering away at Vicksburg. and 
Rosecrans pounding Bragg in Tennessee, it was necessary for 



54 Personal Kecollections of Grant. 

me to be awake. I was in a dangerous position, and the enemy 
could have destroyed either campaign by establishing them- 
selves in my position. I wrote Grant at Vicksburg that I 
thought with ] 2,000 men I had I could penetrate, by the Ten- 
nessee Valley, to the rear of Bragg and destroy his communica- 
tions and supplies concentrated in that valley, and force him 
to retreat. 1 received no answer to my letter, and began to 
think 1 had made a fool of myself, and swore inwardly that 
it was the first and last time I would ever be caught in such 
a boat. A long time (to me) after the suggestion, General 
Oglesby, who was commanding that district, received a dis- 
patch from General Grant instructing him to have Dodge carry 
out the movement suggested in his last letter, and that was all 
the order 1 received. I marched up the Tennessee Valley, de- 
stroying the railways and stores, which the Confederate Gov- 
ernment estimated to be in value not less than $20,000,000. Of 
course Bragg threw before and behind me such forces as he 
could spare, so that the rumors which reached Corinth were 
generally that 1 was captured, whipped, etc. These reports 
were all fired into General Grant, and no doubt he became dis- 
guested at them: but he finally wired in answer to them that: 
"If Dodge lias accomplished what he started out to do we 
can afford to lose him." That settled the question; they sent 
Grant no more rumors. The enemy was distracted by the mov- 
ing out from my column of General Straighl and his miounted 
force, who had been sent out upon his celebrated raid by Gen 
era! Rosecrans. Grant, in commenting on it afterwards; said to 
me that he knew the troops I had. and he had no doubt they 
would la' heard from before they were captured or destroyed. 
1 did not start out to fight, but to destroy, and he thought the 
distraction of the movement of Straight would puzzle the 
enemy so much that I would be able to get out of harm's way 
before they could concentrate any force on me which 1 could 
not whip. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 55 

General Grant, on July 27, 1863, at Vieksburg, wrote a let- 
ter to the War Department, asking for the promotion of four 
Brigadier-Generals to Major-Generals, and nine Colonels to 
Brigadier-Generals, as a reward for this campaign, stating 
they had all rendered valuable service in the field, and would 
fill the places for which they were recommended well. Al- 
though I was not directly before Vieksburg, but had an in- 
dependent command upon General Grant's Hank, he placed me 
at the head of the list. One would suppose that after such a 
great victory, such a recommendation would have received im- 
mediate attention, but it did not. and only one officer. Colonel 
John A. Rawlins, Grant's Chief of Staff, received any promo- 
tion — he was made a Brigadier-General. And not for a long 
time — not until Generals Grant and Sherman made additional 
and urgent requests, were any promotions made. In my case, 
General Grant, when he was called to AVashington by Presi- 
dent Lincoln, made it a personal matter. Right after the Bat- 
tle of the Wilderness he urged it again, but it was not until 
June, 1864, during the Atlanta campaign, that I received the 
promotion, when Lincoln wired Sherman that he had appoint- 
.ed me and relieved him from his trouble. I was a Brigadier 
General with a Corps command in the Atlanta campaign, 
which was very embarrassing, as there were Major-Generals 
in the same army commanding Divisions. President Lincoln, 
when he promoted me, paid me this very high compliment : 
"'General Dodge has been more strongly recommended, and his 
promotion more persistently urged by his superior officers than 
any other man I have made a Major-General. " 

The organization of the Sixteenth Army Corps, of which 
Major-General Stephen A. Hurlbut was commander, was two 
wings, the right commanded by Brigadier-General A. J. Smith, 
which was in the field in the Meridian campaign, and in 
Bank's campaign, and which so completely defeated Forest 
and his command: and the left wing which was commanded 



56 Personal Recollections oe Grant. 

by Dodge, which was in the field with the Army of the Ten- 
nessee. Hurlbut's headquarters were at Memphis, and his 
Corps command included a large territory to which he gave 
his attention. Grant was dissatisfied with Hurlbut's adminis- 
tration of this territory and relieved him, assigning General 
C. C. Washburn to the command of that District, and ordered 
Hurlbut to Cairo, but didn't relieve him from the command 
of the Corps. Hurlbut immediately demanded of Sherman to 
take command of the Corps in the field. Sherman acknowl- 
edged his right to "this, but Grant did not approve of it, and 
ordered that Hurlbut should be stationed at Cairo, and that 
Dodge should command that portion of the Corps which was 
in the Atlanta campaign. Grant, McPherson (who command- 
ed the Army of the Tennessee), and Sherman (who command- 
ed the Military Division), all urged that I be promoted to a 
rank fitting my command, and this is the explanation of Lin- 
coln's dispatch. The fact is that after three years of war the 
western army got very few promotions for its splendid work'. 
and not until Grant was made Commander-in-( hief was he 
able to give to his subordinate commanders in that army the 
rank he said they were entitled to. 

During 1863 General Lorenzo Thomas, the Adjutant-Gen- 
eral, had visited the western armies and given officers author- 
ity to raise negro regiments at Corinth. I had officered and 
mustered in two regiments. Grant had not made known his 
views, although he gave every facility to officers recruiting 
these regiments, but on August 9th, 1863, General Grant wired 
President Lincoln from Viekslmrg as follows: 

General Thomas has gone again to the Mississippi Val- 
ley with a view of raising colored troops. 1 have no reason to 
doubt yon arc doing what you reasonably ean upon the same 
subject. I believe it is a source which, if vigorously applied 
now, will soon close this conflict. It works double — in weak- 
ening the enemy and strengthening i !s . We were not fully 
ready for it until the river was open; now I think' at least 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 



100,000 men ought to be placed along its shores, relieving all 
white troops to serve elsewhere. 

Right after the Vicksburg campaign General Grant pro- 
posed occupying the Rio Grande frontier, because the French 
had entered Mexico, and to use immediately the rest of his 
army to capture Mobile and move' on Montgomery and Selma. 
Alabama, and perhaps Atlanta, Georgia, using the Alabama 
River from Mobile to supply his column; but again his great 
victorious army was scattered. Parke, with the Ninth Corps, 
was returned to East Tennessee, and Sherman, with the Fif- 
teenth Corps, was started from Memphis to march along the 
Memphis & Charleston Railway to the Tennessee River, and 
up that river slowly, evidently for the purpose of being in po- 
sition to aid Rosecrans in his campaign against Bragg. 

CHATTANOOGA. 

Right after the Battle of Chicamaugua and the concentra- 
tion of the Army of the Cumberland in Chattanooga, the dis- 
patches of the Assistant Secretary of War, Charles A. Dana, 
who was in Chattanooga, greatly alarmed the authorities in 
Washington, and at a conference it was decided to at once 
place that army in General Grant's command, and the Military 
Division of the Mississippi was organized, which virtually in- 
cluded all the territory west of the Alleghanies. General 
Grant was placed in command of it, and proceeded immediate- 
ly to Chattanooga. In ten days he placed a starving army on 
a safe basis, had opened its cracker line and was forming his 
plans to attack Bragg. Sherman, who was marching from the 
Mississippi east, was ordered to drop everything and march 
to Chattanooga. Sherman had commanded the Fifteenth Army 
Corps, but now took Grant's command of the Army of the 
Tennessee, and moved rapidly east with the Fifteenth Army 
Corps, then commanded by Frank P. Blair, and the left wing 
of the Sixteenth Corps commanded by Dodge. On November 



58 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

5th Grant ordered Sherman to leave Dodge's command at 
Athens, Alabama, to rebuild the Nashville & Decatur Railroad, 
which he said was necessary for him to have to feed his army. 
He said in his letter : 

It is not my intention to leave any part of your army to 
guard roads, and particularly not Dodge, who lias been kept 
continuously on such work. 

There was a combination of conditions at Chattanooga that 
rendered it necessary for Grant to fight at once. As Long- 
street had left Bragg 's front for the purpose of whipping 
Burnside at Knoxville, the authorities in Washington were 
greatly disturbed at the fear of losing East Tennessee, which 
was almost unanimously Union in its sentiment, and dispatches 
were continuously coming to Grant from "Washington to go 
to the aid of Burnside. Grant's answer was that he would 
fight as soon as Sherman got up, and that that in effect would 
relieve Burnside. On November 21st Grant wired to Halleck : 

I have never felt such restlessness before as I have at the 
condition of the Army of the Cumberland. 

Sherman, himself, reached Chattanooga on November 17th. 
his force arrived on November 26th, and the battle was im- 
mediately fought. Right in the midst of the battle Lincoln 
wired Grant not to forget Burnside. Grant wired: ''I will 
start Granger this evening to Burnside 's relief." 

Grant followed the enemy to Ringgold, and stayed over 
night at Graysville with Sheridan, and returned to Chatta- 
nooga on the evening of the 28th. He says: 

I found Granger had not got off, nor did he have the 
number of men I had directed. He moved with reluctance and 
complaint, and I therefore determined, notwithstanding the 
fact that two Divisions of Sherman's army had marched from 
Memphis and gone into battle immediately on their arrival at 
Chattanooga, to send him with his command. Granger's or- 
der was to accompany him. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 59 

Sherman's troops were not fit to make this march to 
Knoxville. They were without clothes, shoes, blankets, or 
overcoats, and Grant wrote to him as follows : 

Chattanooga, November 2i)th, 1863. 
Major-General William T. Sherman : 

News is received from Knoxville to the morning of the 27th. 
At that time the place was invested, but the attack on it was 
not vigorous — Longstreet evidently having determined to 
starve the garrison out. Granger is on the way to Burnside's 
relief, but I have lost all faith in his energy and capacity to 
manage an expedition of the importance of this one. I am 
inclined to think, therefore, that I shall have to send you. 

Push as rapidly as you can to the Hiwassee and determine 
for yourself what force to take with you from that point. 
Granger has his Corps with him, from which you will select in 
conjunction Avith the forces you now have with you. In plain 
words, you will assume command of all the forces now moving 
up the Tennessee, including the garrison at Kingston, and 
from that force organize what you deem proper to relieve 
Burnside. The balance send back to Chattanooga. 

Granger has a boat loaded with provisions, which you can 
issue and return the boat. T will have another loaded to follow 
you. Subsist off the country all you can, and use the rations, 
of course, but as sparingly as possible. 

It is expected that Foster is moving by this time from Cum- 
berland Gap on Knoxville. I do not know what force he has 
with him, but presume it will range from 4,500 to 5,000. I 
leave this matter to you, knowing that you will do better act- 
ing upon your discretion than you could trammeled with in- 
structions. I will only add that the last advices from Burn- 
side, himself, indicated his ability to hold out rations only to 
about the 3d of December. 

C. S. GRANT, Major-General. 

Sherman's movement with Granger's Corps of the Army of 
the Cumberland saved Knoxville, as Longstreet had it invest- 
ed. Sherman proposed to Burnside that Longstreet be driven 
out of Tennessee, but Burnside thought that he could do it 
without using Sherman's force. He thought that Longstreet 
would either get out of East Tennessee or return to Bragg 's 
army, but was mistaken, and this mistake caused a great deal 
of trouble, and was one of the main reasons that prevented 



60 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

Grant's comprehensive campaign for the winter of 1864. Long- 
street remained in East Tennessee until spring, and was the 
cause of continual anxiety in Washington and at Knoxville. 
Grant said that it was a great mistake, and greatly regretted 
that he did not insist upon their fighting Longstreet, and forc- 
ing him to retreat from East Tennessee when the movement was 
first made. 

During this lime my forces were stretched from near Nash- 
ville to Decatur, Alabama, guarding and rehuilding the rail- 
road, and holding the north side of the Tennessee Kiver from 
Eastport to Decatur, over one hundred miles, and the only 
possible way to protect my line and continue the work was to 
assume the offensive against the enemy and keep them busy, 
which 1 did by mounting regiments of Infantry, and using 
what Cavalry Grant could send me. The record of the win- 
ter's work is full of remarkable fights of this force on both 
sides of the river. Grant was in continual communication with 
me, as Sherman had gone on the Meridian campaign, and often 
asked me if I could maintain my position, knowing that most 
of my Corps veteranized and had gone on furlough — stating 
that if I needed it, he would order the Army of the Cumber- 
land to aid me. I kept my scoots and spies behind the enemy's 
lines and in that way kept posted as to their movements, and 
they never got to my lines except once or twice while my 
mounted force was in this territory. General Grant, in his 
Memoirs, describes this situation far better than 1 can. and 1 
copy this extract from them: 

General Dodge, beside being a most capable soldier, was 
an experienced railroad builder. lie had no tools to work 
with, except those of the pioneers — axes, picks, and spades. 
With these he was aide to intrench his men and protect them 
against surprises by small parties of the enemy. As he had 
no base of supplies until the road could be completed back to 
Nashville, the first matter to consider, after protecting his men. 
was the getting in of food and forage from the surrounding 
country. lie had his men and his teams bring in all the grain 



Personal ^Recollections of Grant. Gl 

they could find, or all they needed, and all the cattle for beef, 
and such other food as could be found. Millers were detailed 
from the ranks to run the mills along the line of the army. 
When these were not near enough for protection they were 
taken down and moved up to the line of the road. Black- 
smith shops, with all the iron and steel found in them, were 
moved up in like manner. Blacksmiths were detailed and set 
to work making tools necessary in railroad and bridge build- 
ing. Axmen were put to work getting out timber for bridges, 
and cutting fuel for locomotives, when the road should be re- 
paired. Car builders w r ere set to work repairing the locomo- 
tives and cars. Thus every branch of railroad building, mak- 
ing tools to work with, and supplying the workmen with food, 
was all going on at once, and without the aid of a mechanic 
or laborer, except what the command itself furnished. But 
rails and cars the men could not make without material, and 
there was not enough rolling stock to keep the road we al- 
ready had working to its full capacity. There were no rails 
except those in use. To supply these deficiencies I ordered 
eight of the ten engines General McPherson had at Vicksburg 
to be sent to Nashville, and all the cars he had except ten. I 
also ordered the troops in West Tennessee to points on the 
river and on the Memphis & Charleston Railroad, and ordered 
the cars, locomotives and rails from all the railroads except 
the Memphis & Charleston to Nashville. The military mana- 
ger of railroads was also directed to furnish more rolling 
stock, and as far as he could, bridge material. General Dodge 
had the work assigned him finished within forty days after 
receiving his orders. The number of bridges to rebuild was 
one hundred and eighty-two, many of them over deep and 
wide chasms. The length of road repaired was one hundred 
and two miles." 

During this winter my command was in the Department of 
the Cumberland, but not reporting to or under the command 
of any officer of that Department. As General Grant states, 1 
lived off the country, and brought upon myself and my com- 
mand the complaints of every rebel from whom T took forage 
or provisions. The charges against the command when they 
reached me were appalling. An officer of the Army of the 
Cumberland wrote : 

Such disgraceful conduct has never been known in this 
section by Federal or Confederate troops. Men have run 



62 Person al Recollections of Grant. 

wild. The very subsistence has been taken from families. I 
doubt if there has been a smokehouse that has not been 
robbed, protection papers are ignored, negroes taken and 
forced into the army, horses, mules, wagons, in fact everything 
a soldier could lay his hands on, have been taken. 

Grant's answer would paralyze an anti-imperialist of today. 
He ordered the arrest of the officer making the charge, and 
placed this endorsement on the papers : 

Colonel : 

Your dispatch of the 11th of December, 1863, to Captain 
T. C. Williams, and one of January 16th, 1864, to Captain 
Polk, together with Brigadier-General G. M. Dodge's explana- 
tion and remarks thereon, have reached these headquarters. 
Your wholesale attack upon General Dodge, a gallant "and su- 
perior officer, is uncalled for and improper. The authority 
you usurped to yourself in arresting officers acting under his 
orders was unmilitary and in bad taste. The whole tenor of 
your dispatches show bad temper and is calculated to create 
hostility of feeling between troops expected to co-operate with 
each other. Enclosed you will find copy of General Dodge's 
explanation. 

I answered these complaints by referring them to General 
Grant on February 4th, 1864, saying: 

It is galling to any officer to have his command designat- 
ed as mobs, thieves and banditti, and have these sweeping 
charges go up through Departments where he and his com- 
mand are entire strangers. I do not know that I am a bandit 
when I forage, subsist, and mount my command out of a coun- 
try, and when I press negroes to rebuild railroads. My orders 
are to do this, and I consider it not only right but that my 
orders and duty require it. This entire country was full of 
everything when 1 came here, and that was the only induce- 
ment to Bragg or any other rebel General to secure possession 
of it again, and you can depend upon it. he will never turn his 
army towards Middle Tennessee after I am through with it. 
Subsisting my force off the country was a military necessity. 
I have simply obeyed orders and feel that I should be protect- 
ed, and request that you send an officer of your staff here to 
investigate. 

As soon as the Chattanooga and Knoxville campaigns were 
completed, General Grant wrote Halleck that they could not 



Personal Recollections of Grant. G3 

make a winter campaign south of Chattanooga on account of 
the difficulty of the mountain region, and the rainy season, 
and to utilize his large force he proposed to gather up a suf- 
ficient force and move by the Mississippi River to New Orleans, 
and then to Mobile, and attack or invest that place, capture 
it, and then move into Alabama, and perhaps Georgia — a very 
feasible operation, as he could have water communication to 
Selme and Montgomery. Sherman was to march from Vicks- 
burg with 5,000 men from Hurlbut's command and McPher- 
son's Seventeenth Corps, then stationed at or near Vicksburg, 
east to Meridian, destroying the railroads, and gathering all 
stock and supplies that the enemy could use, and join Grant 
at Mobile. 

On December 21st, 1863, I was called to Nashville to meet 
Generals Grant and Sherman in relation to the part my com- 
mand was to take in this combined movement. I was to take 
my Corps, the troops at Eastport, and in connection with Gen- 
eral W. S. Smith's command of 10,000 cavalry, sweep the Ten- 
nessee Valley ; then to the Tombigbee Valley in Mississippi, de- 
stroying all railroads there, attacking any force of the enemy 
in that country, then to Corinth, and then return to Decatur. 
Alabama. All stock and supplies were to be taken that could 
be utilized by the enemy, the intention being that the com- 
mands of Sherman and myself should destroy the railroads and 
take the products of the country so that no considerable force 
of the enemy could remain long in West and Middle Tennes- 
see, and Mississippi. 

The fear of Lincoln and Halleck that Bragg might recover 
and retake Chattanooga if any larger portion of Grant's army 
was moved from there, and the anxiety of Lincoln and Stanton 
for East Tennessee while Longstreet remained there, though 
General Foster, who commanded East Tennessee, had more 
troops than Longstreet, caused the abandonment of all this 
campaign except Sherman's movement from Vicksburg to 



64 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

Meridian. On December 27th Grant started for Knoxville, tele- 
yraphin o Washington he would force a battle in East Tennes- 
see as soon as he arrived. Thus for the fourth time magnificent 
armies, competent to go anywhere under the most competent 
commander, were dispersed and scattered, and during the 
whole winter virtually accomplished nothing. 

On December 20, 1863, Grant moved his headquarters to 
Nashville, and prepared his forces for the spring campaign. 
He expected to make the campaign to Atlanta himself, and 
then to Mobile or Savannah. There is no doubt Grant had 
this in his plans for his spring campaign which he expected to 
make in 1864. Whether he indicated it to anyone I do not 
know. However, Sherman evidently had it in his mind, for as 
soon as that army fell under his command he commenced pre- 
paring for the Atlanta campaign ; and probably both of them 
considered it a proper campaign to make, and Sherman made 
it, with Grant's approval. 

From early in the Rebellion Grant had been impressed 
with the idea thai active and continuous operations of all the 
troops that could he brought into the field, regardless of sea- 
son or weather, was the proper course to pursue. The armies 
in the East and West acted independently and without eon- 
cert, like a balky team, no two pulling together, enabling the 
enemy to use to great advantage his interior lines of communi- 
cation to reinforce the army most vigorously pressed, and to 
furlough a large number during the season of inactivity to go 
to their homes and work at putting in crops to be used for the 
support of their armies. Grant says that he therefore deter- 
mined as soon as he was in command of all the armies — first, 
to concentrate the greatest number of troops possible against 
each of the armed forces of the enemy, preventing him from 
using the same force at different times against any one of our 
armies, and to continually fight the enemy and destroy his 
resources, until there should be nothing left of him. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 65 

As soon as Grant assumed command of all the armies, he 
commenced concentrating forces for the two great armies, 
one the Army of the Potomac, which he was to accompany in 
person, and the other, Sherman's, at Chattanooga. In addi- 
tion, he proposed to move smaller armies, such as Butler's at 
Fort Monroe, Siegel in the Valley, Crook in West Virginia, 
and Banks against Mobile. All to move on May 1st, except 
Banks, whose defeat on the Red River held his force there, 
together with two Divisions of Sherman's army under Gen- 
eral A. J. Smith. This was the first time that any concerted 
movement of all our armies in the field was attempted, and 
it prevented the enemy from concentrating upon any one with- 
out giving us some strategic advantage. As a whole, it was a 
great success, although not equal to Grant's expectations, 
except in the movement of Sherman and the Army of the 
Potomac. 

Before Grant took command of all the armies, there was 
promulgated by Halleck a maxim of war that two battles by 
two different armies should not be fought at the same time. 
An officer of the highest rank and largest command, in com- 
menting on this, said that if our Western armies engaged all 
their forces at the same time it would leave them without a 
single reserve to stem the tide of possible disaster. This pol- 
icy, of course, allowed to the enemy, holding the interior lines, 
the opportunity to reinforce any one of its armies and at all 
times bring an equal or superior force against any one of our 
armies. Grant's plans were the reverse of this, and his orders 
to all our armies were to move on the enemy at the same time 
and keep them busy, and prevent any one of the rebel armies 
from reinforcing the other, and it was this policy that so de- 
pleted the enemy's forces that within a year they were defeat- 
ed, and could not muster force enough to stop the movement of 
any one of our armies, and brought peace. 

Grant's four years' experience at West Point, and the ac- 






66 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

quaintances there formed, and in the Mexican war, gave him 
a knowledge of the officers on both sides in the Civil War, and 
while many people clothed Lee and Johnston with almost 
superhuman ability, Grant says he knew they were mortal, 
and that it was just as well that he felt this. In the beginning 
of the Civil War he believed, with many others, that the war 
would be over in ninety days, until after the Battle of Shiloh. 
He has often said that there should have been no more 
battles in the West after the capture of Donelson, if all troops 
in that region had been under a single commander who could 
have followed up that victory. They could have occupied 
Nashville, Chattanooga, Corinth, Memphis and Vicksburg, and 
other Southern points, prohibiting the enemy from concentrat- 
ing, and virtually capturing and occupying the entire West. 

In the general combination that Grant formed for the move- 
ment of all armies on May 1st, 1864, he did not make any pro- 
vision for the troops in the country west of the Mississippi, 
on account of Banks' failure in the campaign up the Red River, 
which eliminated 40,000 men. There had been a great deal of 
friction there because there were three parts of three depart- 
ments, and no concerted action, which was a source of great 
annoyance to Sherman. There was also a lack of concert of 
action with the troops on the east side of the Mississippi in 
defending that river. On March 28th, 1864, Grant recom- 
mended that all the country embraced in the departments of 
Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and the Gulf, should be formed 
into a Military Division, and of the four commanders west of 
the river he considered Steele would be far the best to assume 
this command, but he said: "The best suggestion I could 
make would be to promote Dodge for Steele's command." 

I was fully aware of the situation west of the Mississippi 
River, as I had commanded in Mississippi, but knew nothing 
of Grant's suggestion until I saw it long afterwards in the 
records. No action was taken at that time, but later on these 
departments were placed under Canby, Steele, and Dodge. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 67 

In March, 1864, General Grant was called to Washington 
by President Lincoln to receive his commission as Lieutenant 
General, and his assignment to the command of all the armies. 
Mr. J. P. Usher, Secretary of the Interior, gives this account 
of what occurred : 

President Lincoln called his Cabinet together without 
giving them notice of what they were called together for. 
They assembled in the Cabinet Room, and there were present, 
Mr. Seward, Secretary of State ; Mr. Chase, Secretary of the 
Treasury; Mr. Stanton, Secretary of War; Mr. AVells, Secre- 
tary of the Navy ; Mr. Blair, Postmaster General ; Mr. Bates, 
Attorney General; and Mr. Usher, Secretary of the Interior. 

Upon entering the room of the President, all his Cabinet 
were present with the exception of Mr. Stanton. Soon after 
the arrival of Secretary Stanton, General Halleck and Gen- 
eral Grant entered the room without accosting the President, 
or any one present, but moved rapidly to the far side of the 
table, and stopped, facing the table, with General Grant be- 
tween General Halleck and Mr. Stanton. The President was 
on the opposite side of the table. 

He arose, then took from the table a scroll, turned it care- 
fully, then opened it and took out the Parchment Commis- 
sion. He then took from the table what soon proved to be his 
address to General Grant, which he read to General Grant. 

Then upon his conclusion, General Grant took from his vest 
pocket a paper containing his response to the President. Grant 
held the paper in his right hand, and commenced reading, hav- 
ing read probably half of it when his voice gave out. Evident- 
ly he had not contemplated the effort of reading, and had 
commenced without inflating his lungs. When General Grant 
commenced reading he was standing awkwardly, what would 
commonly be called "hipshot. " When his voice failed, he 
straightened himself up to his fullest and best form, threw 
back his shoulders, took the paper in both hands — one at each 
end — and drew the paper up to proper reading distance and 
commenced again at the beginning, and read it through in a 
full, strong voice. 

Colonel Fred Grant, who was with his father, says: "The 
papers were prepared the evening before by both the President 
and General Grant." 

After it was read the members of the Cabinet were intro- 
duced to General Grant. None of the members of the Cabinet 



68 Personal Kecollections of Grant. 

had met him before. Mr. Lincoln said to General Grant: "I 
have never met you before." 

General Grant replied: "Yes, you have. I heard you in 
your debate with Douglass at Freeport, and was then intro- 
duced to you. Of course, I could not forget you, neither could 
I expect you to remember me, because multitudes were intro- 
duced to you on that occasion." 

President Lincoln said: "That is so, and I don't think I 
could be expected to remember all." 

Mr. Usher said : 

Up to that time none of us had had any personal acquaint- 
ance with General Grant. We had heard of him from the Bat- 
tle of Pittsburg Landing to the Battle of Iuka and Corinth. 
The reports were as often disparaging as they were favora- 
ble. 

General Grant never sent anyone to propitiate or make 
favor with the President. After the Battle of Corinth, Judge 
Dicky, Judge of the Southern Court of Alabama, and a per- 
sonal friend of Mr. Lincoln, came to Washington from Grant's 
camp, and gave such favorable account of him as gained Mr. 
Lincoln's fullest confidence in Grant's abilities and his confi- 
dence was never broken, nor in the least abated. 

Secretary Usher says: "I heard Mr. Lincoln on one occa- 
sion say: 'Grant is the most extraordinary man in command 
that I know of. I heard nothing direct from him and wrote 
him to know why, and whether I could do anything to pro- 
mote his success, and Grant replied that he had tried to do the 
best he could with what he had, that he believed that if he 
had more men and arms he could use them to good advantage, 
and do more than he had done ; but he supposed I had done 
and was doing all I could, and if I could do more he felt that 
I would do it.' " 

Lincoln said that Grant's conduct was so different from 
most Generals in common, that he could scarcely comprehend 
it. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 69 

Secretary Wells, Secretary of the Navy, in his diary, ex- 
presses his opinion of Grant, as making no impression in his 
visit, and expressed his doubt as to whether he would be suc- 
cessful at the head of the army, notwithstanding all of their 
experience with him and his success. 

When General Grant received the appointment of Lieuten- 
ant General and command of all the armies, he wrote this let- 
ter to General Sherman : 

Nashville, Term., March 4th. 1864. 
Dear feherman : 

. Whilst I have been eminently successful in this war, in at 
least gaining the confidence of the public, no one knows more 
than I how much of this success is due to the energy, skill and 
the harmonious putting forth of that energy and skill of those 
whom it had been my good fortune to have occupying the sub- 
ordinate positions under me. 

There are many officers to whom these remarks are appli- 
cable to a greater or less degree, proportionate to their 
ability as soldiers; but what I want, is to express my thanks 
to you and McPherson, as the men to whom, above all others, 
I feel indebted for whatever I have had of success. 

How far your advice and assistance have been of help to 
me you know. How far your execution of whatever has been 
given you to do entitles you to the reward I am receiving, you 
cannot know as well as I. 

I feel all the gratitude this letter would express, giving it 
the most flattering construction. 

The word "you" I use in the plural, intending it for Mc- 
Pherson also. I should write him, and will some day, but 
starting in the morning, I do not know that T will have time 
just now. Your Friend, 

U. S. GRANT, Major-General. 

General Grant, after his return from Washington, where 
he received his commission as Lieutenant General, and the 
command of all the armies, from President Lincoln, called the 
Army and Corps commanders in the West to meet him in Nash- 
ville, and Sherman, Sheridan, Rawlins, General Granger (com- 
manding post of Nashville), and myself met him. Generals 
McPherson, Logan and Blair were on leave. Why Thomas 
was not there I do not remember. Grant told us of his visit 



70 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

to Washington, the conditions upon which he accepted the 
command of all the armies — that there should be no interfer- 
ence with him, and that the staff departments should be sub- 
ject to. his orders. President Lincoln told him that he could 
not transfer that authority, but that there was no one who 
could interfere with his orders but him (Lincoln), and he 
could rest assured he would not. 

General Grant also told us of his visit to the Army of the 
Potomac, and what a splendid Army it was- — how finely equip- 
ped and provisioned as compared to our armies. General 
Sherman naturally asked him in relation to some of the officers 
of that army whom they mutually knew, and General Grant 
said in answer to him, that they had said to him (Grant), 
"You have not yet met Bobby Lee," intimating to him their 
doubts as to his ability to win the same victories there as he 
had won in the West. 

He also laid down his own plans for the coming campaign, 
that is, that every armed force on the Union side should meet 
the armed force on the enemy's side and all move against them 
on the first day of May, and stay with them until one or the 
other was completely destroyed, in order that the enemy 
could not do as they had heretofore been doing — while one 
part of our army was engaged, the enemy having the interior 
lines could reinforce their army engaged, with forces from 
their armies lying idle. 

General Grant said to General Sherman : 

I expect you to move against Johnston, and keep him 
busy and keep him from sending any of his army to aid Lee, 
and if Lee sends any of his force to aid Johnston, I will send 
you two men to his one. 

General Grant was also anxious to take with him some of 
the principal officers in the Western Armies, who had served 
under him, but General Sherman objected so strenuously that 
Grant only took Sheridan with him. Grant left that afternoon 




MAJOR-GENERAL GEORGE G. MEAD 
Commander Army of the Potomac, 1864 



Personal Eecollections of Grant. 71 

for the East, Sherman accompanied him as far as Cincinnati, 
Ohio. Later at a meeting of the Army of the Tennessee in Cin- 
cinnati, Sherman pointed out to me the room in the Burnett 
House where they spent the night, going over the maps and 
their proposed campaigns. 

We all returned to our commands to prepare for the move- 
ment on the 1st of May, while Grant took up his headquarters 
with the Army of the Potomac, and moved on May 4, 1864, 
across the Rappahannock ; and the Battle of the Wilderness 
was the result. 

The fighting was so desperate on the morning of May 6th, 
when Hancock attacked, and the enemy broke up in such 
confusion that had the country been such that Hancock and 
his command could have seen the confusion and panic of the 
enemy, Grant believed that he would have immediately taken 
advantage of it so effectively that Lee could not have made 
another stand outside his Richmond defenses. 

Warren, in his attack here, went in by Divisions and, of 
course, failed. Grant says : 

Up to this time my judgment was that Warren was the 
man I would suggest to succeed Meade, should anything ever 
happen to take that gallant soldier from the field. 

After two days' fighting at the Wilderness, Lee fell back 
into his intrenchments, which convinced Grant that Lee was 
unable to further continue conflict in open field, and he there- 
fore determined to place his army between Lee and Richmond. 

SPOTTSYLVANIA 

Sheridan secured Spottsylvania and the bridge over the 
Poe, which Lee's force would have to cross to get there. Meade 
unfortunately moved Merritt's force holding the bridge, which 
enabled Anderson's Division, driven out of the woods by fire, 
and which had been ordered by Lee to move in the morning, 
to move long before and cross the bridge, which Merritt would 



72 Personal Eecollections of Grant. 

have prevented, had he been allowed to carry out his orders. 
As soon as Anderson arrived on the ground he intrenched 
himself and thus prevented Grant from planting his army be- 
tween Lee and Richmond, which was the object of his move. 

Hancock, in his attack, carried a salient point of the 
enemy's works, and captured Johnston's Division of 2,000 men 
and twenty pieces of artillery, but nevertheless, the enemy's 
resistance was so effective that no permanent good was ob- 
tained. 

Grant's next move was North Anna, and Lee, having the 
inside line, got there first and intrenched on the north side of 
the stream. 

After the Battles of the Wilderness and Spottsylvania Court 
House, May 13th, 1864, Grant recommended Wright and Gib- 
bon for Major-Generals ; Carrol, Upton and McCandless for 
Brigadier-Generals; Hancock for Brigadier-General in the reg- 
ular army, and Meade and Sherman for Major-Generals in the 
regular army. 

General Grant wrote : 

In making these recommendations, I do not wish the 
claim of General G. M. Dodge for promotion overlooked, and 
recommend that his promotion be sent in at same time. 

COLD HARBOR 

Grant's finding the enemy on the North Anna, moved to 
Hanover Court House, and Sheridan with the Sixth Corps, 
pushed on and captured Cold Harbor. As soon as the rest of 
the army arrived they attacked the enemy and drove them 
back, capturing their first line of works. The enemy made 
several attacks to retake these works, but failed, and suffered 
great loss. On June 3d the great attack on the enemy's works 
was made by order of General Grant, with great loss, while 
the enemy's loss was comparatively small, the only battle in 
the campaign in which Grant says we did not inflict as great 
loss upon the enemy as our own. Grant regretted this attack. 
He was not satisfied in his own mind whether it was a proper 
one to make or not : but the war records show that it was 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 73 

this attack more than any other that disturbed the enemy, and 
if he had persisted in a second attack it would have been a 
great success, as the enemy had no reserve and was greatly 
demoralized. The campaign up to this point, where the march 
was taken to cross the James, had been a wonderful one of 
forty-three days' fighting, showing remarkable endurance on 
the part of the Army of the Potomac. During three long years 
the armies of the Potomac and Northern Virginia had been 
confronting each other and had fought many desperate bat- 
tles — more than it had ever before fallen to the lot of two 
armies to fight — without materially changing the vantage 
ground of either. 

In connection with this short campaign Grant speaks high- 
ly of Sheridan, and the wonderful fighting of his cavalry. 

Siegel, in the Valley, had moved on time, but Grant's first 
dispatch from Halleck stated that he was in full retreat. It 
also said he never did anything but run. Crook did better. 
He performed his task, destroyed the Virginia & Tennessee 
Railroad, and burned the bridge over New River. Butler 
lost his opportunity when he failed to plant himself on the 
Richmond & Petersburg Railway. Butler's first move was a 
success, but he waited six days before moving on Petersburg, 
which enabled Beauregard to collect a force in North and 
South Carolina, and entrench them in his front at Bermuda 
Hundred, and, as Colonel Comstock expressed it, "bottled him 
up." 

PETERSBURG 

As soon as Grant determined to cross the James he visited 
General Butler and ordered General "W. F. Smith's Corps to 
take Petersburg. Smith confronted the enemy's pickets in 
front of Petersburg before daylight, but for some reason did 
not attack until late in the day, about 7 P. M., when he car- 
ried the enemy's outworks, driving them two and one-half 
miles, capturing fifteen pieces of artillery and three hundred 
prisoners. There were no other works of the enemy between 
him and Petersburg, and nothing to keep him from marching 
in and occupying the town. Hancock's Corps had arrived to 



74 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

support him, having been ordered to do so. Hancock came 
up in the evening and offered him any force he desired, not as- 
suming command himself, as he did not know the situation. 
Smith only took one Division from him, and that was to re- 
lieve his own troops. It was a clear moonlight night, and 
Grant felt, and always said, that Petersburg should have been 
taken then and there. 

Grant arrived there the next morning, but during the night 
the enemy had brought reinforcement to Petersburg, and were 
in intrenchments facing Smith's forces. The army remained 
quiet and resting until the attack upon and explosion of the 
mine at Petersburg. Burnside's failure to clear his front, as 
ordered, and failure to select a proper Division Commander to 
push through the crater and occupy the ground beyond, 
caused the mine disaster. The two adjoining Corps had cleared 
their fronts and were ready to charge. Grant had great 
hopes of making a permanent break in the enemy's lines, and 
was greatly annoyed that it should fail from lack of proper 
management. 

General Crook, in West Virginia, was successful. He 
marched south, and his cavalry destroyed the New River 
bridge, and joined the infantry at Union. Siegel, with 7,000 
troops, marched up the Shenandoah Valley to New Market. 
He was defeated and retreated to Cedar Creek, and Grant re- 
lieved him, placing General Hunter in command. Hunter and 
Crook unitedly moved to Staunton and Lynchburg. Had they 
been able to capture Lynchburg it would have been a very 
damaging blow to Lee. Hunter fought and defeated the enemy 
at Piedmont, but retreated from Lynchburg after partially in- 
vesting it, for want of ammunition. His movement was a suc- 
cess. 

Soon afterwards Early defeated our forces in the Shenan- 
doah Valley. Grant wanted to send Sheridan there, but there 
was great opposition to that at Washington. He finally sent 
this dispatch to General Halleck : 

I want Sheridan put in command of all troops in the field 
in the valley, with instructions to put himself south of the 



Personal Becollections of Grant. 75 

enemy and to follow him to the death ; wherever the enemy 
goes see that our troops go also. 

This was disregarding the timidity that kept a large force 
dodging to the right and left in front of Washington, for 
fear that the enemy might otherwise slip up and capture the 
city. President Lincoln got hold of this dispatch some way, 
and sent this characteristic dispatch to General Grant. This 
is a very important dispatch because it shows that Lincoln had 
absolutely lost all faith in everybody around him in Washing- 
ton. He telegraphed: 

You are exactly right, but please look over any dispatch 
you may have received from there since you made the 
order and discover, if you can, if there is any idea in the 
head of anyone here of putting our army south of the enemy 
or of following him to the death in any direction. I repeat to 
you, it will neither be done nor attempted unless you watch 
it every hour and day, and enforce it. 

Think of that coming from the President of the United 
States — with everybody subordinate to him, telling General 
Grant unless he goes there in person and sees that his orders 
are carried out it won't be done. 

The trouble was the dispatches went through Washington 
where they had a semi-control over movements in the Valley. 
On receipt of these dispatches, Grant went immediately to 
Washington and to the Valley, and, after an interview with 
Hunter, who told him how the uncertainty and conflict of 
orders rendered it impossible for any commander to accom- 
plish anything, determined on Hunter's request, to send Sheri- 
dan to the Shenandoah, with orders that he should get south 
of the enemy and follow him to the death, and to sweep the 
Valley of the Confederate forces. Stanton and Halleck object- 
ed to his placing Sheridan in command, stating that he was too 
young; they seemed to be governed by age instead of results, 
but Grant insisted and Sheridan cleaned up the Valley for all 
time. 



76 Personal Recollections of G rant. 

Sherman, with his three armies — the Tennessee, the Ohio, 
and the Cumberland — over 100,000 strong, moved the same day 
the Army of the Potomac did, and made that wonderful cam- 
paign from Chattanooga to Atlanta where, during the entire 
time from May 5th until the capture of Atlanta, the forces 
were not a musket-shot apart. Grant's letters and dispatches 
show his confidence in and admiration for Sherman and his 
army, also of the short but wonderful and successful cam- 
paign of Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley. In October all 
armies were taking a rest for the second and last movement. 

In October, 1864, while I had not entirely recovered from 
my wound, received at Atlanta, and consequently was unable 
to enter at once upon active duty, Brigadier-General Rawlins, 
Chief of Staff, invited me to make a visit to General Grant's 
headquarters with the Army of the Potomac, then at City 
Point, with a view of consulting as to a new command. In 
response to the invitation I made a visit there as soon as I 
was able, and remained several days, making myself familiar 
with that army. I made known my preference for the West, 
and so informed General Grant, although the command they 
had in view was a very high one. 

"While at City Point I lived at headquarters, and for the 
first time came in continual contact with General Grant and 
General Rawlins, but I had yet to learn what personal friends 
they had been, and how many kind things they had said of me. 

It was their custom to sit out in front of the tents around 
the camp-fire of evenings until late in the night, and a free 
discussion of the battles and movements was held, which gave 
a better insight into the operations of the army than could 
possibly be obtained in any other way. 

At General Grant's suggestion I visited the headquarters 
of the various Corps, and was very cordially received, but I 
discovered a feeling there that was a stranger to us in the 
West — a feeling, the existence of which seemed to me to bode 
no good. I heard officers criticise others, and make comments 
upon Grant's strategy that sounded harsh to my ears, for I 
had never thought of criticising an order or an officer. I had 
been serving in an army where, if the command to my right or 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 77 

left was in trouble, and I had a man out of the fight, I was 
in the habit of sending him to aid, and every other commander 
would do the same by me, seldom if ever thinking of waiting 
for the order of the army commander. McPherson had said to 
us the night before the attack on Kenesaw, when Logan criti- 
cised the order as leading us to destruction, "So much the 
more reason that we should put our energies and hearts into 
carrying it out, so that it shall not fail on account of our dis- 
approval," that being the only time I ever beard an order 
even criticised. But I must say I heard it in the Army of the 
Potomac, and anything but kindly comments by one comman- 
der upon another, and, as this was in the dark days of the 
war, I had many misgivings about what I heard. Rawlins 
had won my confidence, and on my return to camp in the even- 
ing I used to tell him what I had heard, and he would laugh 
and say, "General, this is not the old Army of the Tennes- 
see." 

General Grant talked to me freely, told me of his attacks, 
his partial failures at the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Har- 
bor, Bermuda Hundred, and Petersburg, and what he had ex- 
pected, and without saying so, led me to think that someone in 
each instance had been to blame. Finally I innocently asked 
him who was at fault, saying that with us out West someone 
would have lost his head under such circumstances. But he 
quietly answered, without showing any disturbance, that 
"That had not yet been determined." General Grant ques- 
tioned me very minutely about our movements; also about the 
relieving of General Logan and putting Howard in command in 
his place in the Army of the Tennessee, after McPherson was 
killed. While I had no feeling against Howard, I think I 
expressed the belief that the Army of the Tennessee expected 
that Logan would be continued in command, and while I think 
General Grant agreed with me, he did not by hint or word 
show me that he disapproved of the action taken. I remember 
saying that I thought the little army that he, Sherman and Mc- 
Pherson had grown up from, and which had on the 22d of July 
fought its battle without an order or the presence of a super- 



78 . Personal Recollections of Grant. 

ioT officer until the clay's fight was nearly over, certainly had 
material sufficient within it to command it, and Logan being 
its senior officer, seemed to us the proper man to take it. His 
answer was a compliment to Logan, but he said that "Sher- 
man knew best." General Rawlins was decided in his disap- 
proval of the change. 

I did not know at that time that General Grant had recom- 
mended me for the first vacancy in the grade of Major-Gen - 
eral immediately after the fall of Vicksburg, nor was I then 
aware that it was at Grant's suggestion I was given command 
of the Sixteenth Army Corps in the field, although only a 
Brigadier-General in the rank with Major-Generals all around 
me commanding Divisions ; nor did I know that he had recom- 
mended me for the command west of the Mississippi River, 
and the Department of Kentucky. 

I was informed that General Butler was to make a demon- 
stration against the enemy north of the James River, and it 
was suggested to me that I should go up there and witness the 
attack and look at that army. 

Accordingly the next morning I took General Grant's boat 
and went to Butler's front, and witnessed the attack until I 
concluded it was a failure, and noted that he made no impres- 
sion on the enemy, and that the troops seemed to go in a half- 
hearted way against the works at their front. I returned to 
the boat, supposing the fight was over, and went back to City 
Point. General Grant met me and inquired very earnestly 
about the fight, and I naturally said that it was a failure. I 
saw the General was surprised, and as it was about 9 P. M. 
I sat down by the camp fire, and he then told me his dis- 
patches indicated a great success. I said to myself, "I guess t 
will hold my tongue," and felt that I had evidently not seen 
the best part of the fighting; but I saw that what I had said to 
the General was worrying him and he wired for full particu- 
lars. The next dispatch that came was an evasive one, and 
was intended to pave the way for receiving the dispatches 
which came pouring in rapidly from one commander and an- 
other, until at last the General spoke up to me and said : "You 




MA.IOR-GENERAI, JOHN A. RAWLINS, 1865 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 79 

are right, General, it is a defeat instead of a victory," and we 
turned in for the night. 

The following letters from Gen. John A. Rawlins speaks of 
my visit to Gen. Grant and this attack of Gen. Butler on the 
enemies' entrenched line: 

City Point, October 12th, 1864. General Dodge of the 
Western Army is here. It does one's heart good to meet one 
from the army that has made such a bright record for its 
country's honor and its own fame. I can shake the hands of 
these veterans and heroes with something of the thrill of joy 
and pride that pervades my being when I take hold of the 
hand of my own dear wife after months of absence. 

General Quimby, formerly of the old Army, is also here. 
He is, however, not in the service, having long since resigned. 
Major-General Doyle of the English service is here. He is- the 
least English and most American of any Englishman I have 
ever met. He sympathizes with us in our struggle to maintain 
our governmental authority, and furthermore he believes we 
will succeed. 

City Point, October 17th, 1864. General Butler, although 
acting under positive orders not to attack the enemy in forti- 
fied positions, did so attack, and lost for us fully 1,000 men, 
killed, wounded and prisoners, without any corresponding 
damage, if damage at all, to the enemy. I am free to say I fear 
the continuance of General Butler in command will some day 
work disaster of a serious character to our arms. But General 
Grant has had to deal with such men from the beginning and 
has succeeded. I therefore have hopes he will succeed with 
this one. 

As I was about to return to my Command at Atlanta, Gen- 
eral Grant suggested to me to go by way of Washington, and 
call on President Lincoln. Of course I acceded, but did not 
then clearly understand the reason, nor could I easily see what 
I was to call on the President for. While I was at City Point 
was evidently the most anxious days for Grant, although 
he had no doubt that his next campaign would end the war. 
The troops coming to him were drafted men. I was told that 
desertions were very heavy; that as high as 1,400 had left in 
a week. Hancock and other officers were becoming discour- 
aged. Some commanders were on leave of absence, and it was 
so blue around there that one evening I suggested to Rawlins 



80 Personal Kecollections of Grant. 

that it looked to me like the rats deserting a sinking ship. I 
could not appreciate the feeling, for the Army of the Potomac 
was the finest, best equipped and best appointed army I had 
ever seen. General Ingall's single sample depot at City Point 
would have been a supply to one of our "Western Corps. 

On leaving City Point, Major-General Boyle of the British 
Army, accompanied me to "Washington. He had been down 
on a visit to General Grant's headquarters. His rank in the 
British army was about equal to that of a Colonel in ours. He 
was a fine, soldierly-looking man, over 60 years old. He 
questioned me very closely all the way to "Washington as to 
my service in the army. So young a Major-General command- 
ing a Corps seemed to him extraordinary, and he made compar- 
ison very pointedly at the table on the boat, very much to my 
embarrassment. 

It was morning when we arrived in Washington. I went 
to the White House after breakfast, really not knowing what 
I was going there for. In the ante-room I met Senator Harlan 
of my state, who took me in with him to see Mr. Lincoln. The 
President greeted me very cordially, and I said to him that 
I had merely called to pay my respects on my way to join my 
command; that I had been down to General Grant's headquar- 
ters for a week or two, and got up to leave, when the Presi- 
dent asked me if I had any appointment to meet, and said he 
would like me to remain, as he wanted to talk with me. 
Accordingly I sat in his room while he disposed of the crowd 
in a kindly way and, after the door was shut, he saw I was 
embarrassed and instead of talking to me he took down a 
book, saying he wanted to read to me some good things. I be- 
lieve the book was called the ''Gospel of Peace," or something 
of that kind. 

Many years afterwards, after a conversation with General 
Grant, I sent him this letter relating to my visit to the Presi- 
dent: 

,,-,'« , New York, Dec. 19th, 1884. 

My Dear General: 

I was not aware until my visit to you on Sunday that you 

were writing a history of the "War of the Rebellion." I know 



Personal Eecollections of Grant. 81 

of the articles to be published in the Century Magazine. Dur- 
ing my visit to you at City Point, I met with an incident that 
may be news or of interest to you. You will doubtless remem- 
ber that while I was recovering from my wound, received 
at Atlanta, I visited City Point and was a guest at your head- 
quarters a week or ten days, and saw the Army of the Poto- 
mac ; was up to see the battle fought on the north side of the 
James, and brought news of what I thought was a defeat, but 
which your dispatches made a victory. When I was ready to 
return to my command at Atlanta, I met orders from General 
Sherman which stopped me at Nashville and ordered me to 
Vicksburg, and before I reached that command you ordered 
me to relieve General Kosecrans in command of the Depart- 
ment of the Missouri, with a view of taking my troops to 
Thomas at Nashville. 

If you remember, when I left City Point, you suggested I 
should return by Washington, and call upon the President, 
and sent me in your boat. General Rufus Ingalls, your chief 
quartermaster, and Major-General Cyrus Boyle, of the British 
army, I think at that time in command in Canada, was with 
me. 

I was a very young officer, inexperienced in meeting the 
world, and with a great reverence for position and authority, 
hence I hardly knew how to reach President Lincoln nor what 
to say to him when I saw him. I had only a few hours to 
spend in Washington, and after breakfast I went directly to 
the White House where, in the ante-room, I met Senator Tlar- 
lan of my state, who took me to Mr. Lincoln. The President 
met me cordially, and asked me to wait until he had dismissed 
the crowd, when he took me into a room back of what I now 
know as the cabinet room, took down a book which, if I re- 
member rightly, was called the "Gospel of Peace." It was a 
very funny book, and he read from it, and I laughed heartily, 
until he made me perfectly easy and at home. He took me 
down to lunch and pumped out of me everything I had seen 
at City Point, and what results were to be expected from the 
movements there. My answer to him was, briefly, I had no 
doubt as to their success. In detail, as I remember it, my an- 
swer was, "You know out West we believe in General Grant. 
We have no doubts. Give him time and he will succeed; in 
what way or how, I don't know, but you may depend upon it 
he will succeed." 

Mr. Lincoln jumped up from his chair, took both my hands 
in his, and said: "I am thankful to you for saying so " I 
was a very much embarrassed person, but it made such an 
impression upon me that I never forgot it. 

After the Avar when General "Rawlins was with me on the 



82 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

plains I related the circumstances to him, and he said that 
the pressure and complaints at that time at Washington was 
very great. 

My confidence as to results around Richmond came from 
my faith — not from what I had seen there, and from the fact 
that all of us who had long before driven from our minds any 
doubts as to the final results. I well remember how confident- 
ly and enthusiastically I told President Lincoln what I felt, 
but could not give him a fact upon which to prove my belief. 
When I arose to leave, President Lincoln thanked me for call- 
ing and said, "If you have no objections you can take my good 
wishes and regards with you to your army." That night I left 
Washington more annoyed than otherwise that there should 
be so many doubts as to your success. 

General Rawlins may have told you of this interview, or 
it may be new to you. I give it as I remember it. 

Yours truly, 

G. M. DODGE. 

The purport of all this came to me in after years when I 
found the anxiety that existed about the Army of the Potomac, 
and the existence in some quarters of an intrigue against Gen- 
eral Grant. My belief in him knew no doubts, and it never 
entered my head that the President wanted faith, and I think 
my earnest belief and faith carried me beyond proper bounds 
in expressing it before the President. 

When I left General Grant, I knew that neither he or Gen- 
eral Sherman considered me well enough to join Sherman 
in his march to the sea, but expected me to be sent to Vicks- 
burg to take command of the troops of the 16th Army 
Corps, organized there — the two Divisions of the Sixteenth 
Corps with Sherman having been turned over, one Division to 
the Fifteenth Corps and one Division to the Seventeenth Corps, 
and the two Divisions of the Seventeenth Corps on the Mis- 
sissippi River were to be turned into the Sixteenth Corps. 
This, with such other forces on the Mississippi River, were to 
be mobilized and the movement which I was to command was 
to be made against Mobile, in concert with the movement to be 
made from New Orleans by the United States Navy. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 83 

In the meantime General Howard had issued an order re- 
organizing the Sixteenth Corps, and placing Major-General 
N. J. T. Dana, who was a stranger in that department, to the 
command of it, whereas, Major-General A. J. Smith and my- 
self had had command of the two wings of the Sixteenth Corps 
in the field almost ever since its organization, and General 
Howard's action caused a great deal of criticism and feeling. 

When I arrived at Nashville on November 3d, I found an 
order from General Sherman for me to proceed to Vieksburg 
and report to Major-General N. J. T. Dana, commanding the 
Sixteenth Corps, as commander of the District of Vieksburg, 
and left wing of the Sixteenth Army Corps. General How- 
ard wrote me a private letter, giving his reasons for assign- 
ing Dana to the head of the Sixteenth Corps, stating that he 
had three Major-Generals in his command — Dana, Smith and 
myself — for assignment, and that Dana being the ranking 
officer, he had given him the Corps, thus ignoring Smith and 
myself. 

From Nashville I went immediately to St. Louis enroute to 
Vieksburg. At St. Louis 1 received a dispatch from General 
John A. Rawlins, General Grant's Chief of Staff, which indi- 
cated General Grant was not satisfied witli my assignment, 
and on November 12th I received a dispatch from Colonel 
William F. Clark, Assistant Adjutant General of the Army 
of the Tennessee, ordering me not to go to Vieksburg, but to 
meet him at Louisville, Kentucky. 

On November 15th I met Colonel Clark at Louisville, and 
he notified me that the order sending me to Vieksburg had 
been suspended at the request of General Grant, that he was 
not satisfied with General Howard's reorganization of the Six- 
teenth Army Corps, and objected to my assignment under 
Dana — that General Howard was greatly worried over it, and 
that by order of General Grant I had been ordered to St. Louis, 
and Colonel Clark handed me General Howard's order, which 
read as follows : 



84 Personal Recollections of Grant. 



Major-General G. M. Dodge and Staff will proceed to 
St. Louis aud there establish his headquarters for the pur- 
pose of making out reports of the campaign in Georgia. 

I returned to St. Louis and on December 2, 1864, received 
the order of the Secretary of War, issued at the request of 
General Grant. assigning me to the command of the Depart- 
ment and Army of the Missouri, relieving Major-General Rose- 
crans. 

In speaking of the campaign Sherman was to make from 
Atlanta, Grant says: 

General G. M. Dodge, an exceedingly efficient officer, 
having been badly wounded, had to leave the army, and his 
two Diyisions of the Sixteenth Corps were transferred to the 
Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps; Sherman, after detaching 
the Fourteenth Corps and Schofield 's army to Thomas, had 
about 60,000 strong and hearty men, as good soldiers as ever 
trod the earth, better than any European soldiers, because 
they not only worked like a. machine, but the machine 
thought. 

As soon as Grant wired Sherman that he could start on Ms 
march to the sea. he naturally felt anxiety as to the move- 
ments of Hood. Grant felt that Thomas should concentrate 
all his forces except those occupying Chattanooga and De- 
catur, and attack Hood south of the Duck River, and when 
Hood moved and forced Schofield back to Franklin, Grant 
naturally became anxious. Schofield, himself, thought that a 
concentration should be made south of the Duck River, and 
when Schofield fought the great battle of Franklin so success- 
fully, and Hood's army suffered such a great loss in officers 
and men, Grant thought that Thomas, with his 70,000 men, 
should reinforce Schofield from Nashville and that the battle 
with Hood should have been fought out there ; but Thomas 
thought otherwise, and after this great victory Schofield was 
obliged to fall back within the intrenchments at Nashville 
Grant then became more anxious than ever. He knew the dis 



Personal Recollections of Grant. So 

position of Hood, and was fearful lie would cross the Cum- 
berland, flank Nashville and move to Louisville, which would 
drive our forces back to the Ohio River again. Grant's anx- 
iety is shown in his dispatches to Washington and to Thomas, 
and he finally made up his mind to repair to Nashville him- 
self. He sent the following dispatch to the Secretary of War 
on December 8. 1864. 

Please direct General Dodge to send all the troops he can 
spare to General Thomas. With such an order he can be re- 
lied upon to send all that can possibly go. They had better be 
sent to Louisville, for I fear either Hood or Breckenridge will 
get to the Ohio River. I will submit whether it is not advis- 
able to call on Ohio, Indiana and Illinois for 60,000 men for 
thirty days. If Thomas has not struck yet he should be ordered 
to hand over his command to Schofield. There is no better 
man to repel an attack than Thomas, but I fear he is too cau- 
tious to ever take the initiative. 

On this order I sent to Thomas, with the two Divisions 
under General A. J. Smith which had already gone, 20,000 
men. Grant says that Thomas had 70,000 men, and that he 
had enough to annihilate Hood in the open field. 

On December 15th Logan was at City Point, and was given 
orders to proceed to Nashville. Grant himself also started for 
Nashville, and wired me he might want me to take command 
of the troops I had sent to Thomas. The day Logan arrived 
at Louisville, Thomas commenced his attack on Hood, and he 
proceeded no further. Thomas' complete victory over Hood 
relieved Grant's anxiety, and he immediately sent Thomas 
congratulatory dispatches. 

Thomas, while a great soldier, was of an entirely different 
disposition from Grant, Sherman and Sheridan, whose great 
effort was to always be the attacking party. Grant held that 
this gave an advantage of twenty-five per cent. Thomas pre- 
ferred to wait until he was certain, or to receive an attack on 
his own chosen ground, and in that way destroy the enemy. 
He was rightly named the "'Rock of Chicamauga." 



80 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

Sherman's march to the sea was a picnic for that old array 
of his. It caused rumors and speculations and great anxiety 
among the people. The rebel papers were full of mis-state- 
ments, saying Sherman's army was starving, demoralized and 
wandering without objective point, endeavoring only to reach 
the sea; and these statements alarmed the people of the north, 
who appealed to Lincoln, who in turn appealed to Grant, and 
on his (Grant's) answer, Lincoln in response to these appeals, 
said: 

Grant says they are safe with such a General, and if 
they cannot get out where they want to they can crawl back 
by the hole they went in at. 

No one can read the reports of the final movement in Feb- 
ruary, 1865, and the comprehensive plans that first destroyed 
all the railroads surrounding Petersburg and Richmond, the 
combination of Terry and Schofield at Wilmington, the at- 
tack of Canby on Mobile, Wilson on Montgomery and Selma, 
Stoneman from East Tennessee towards Lynchburg, while 
Sherman moved on Johnston, Sheridan on Five Forks, and 
Meade on Lee, without perceiving that the story reads like 
a romance rather than the last grapple of giants. Every move 
was a success, and by April 15th the war was ended. Grant 
says : 

It has been my fortune to see the armies of both East and 
West fight battles, and from what T have seen there is no dif- 
ference in their fighting qualities. 

As to* the surrender at Appomattox, and of Johnston to 
Sherman, Grant tells the story in the simplest words, that 
thoroughly describe the man as I knew him from 1862 until 
his death. He said : 

What General Lee's feelings were 1 do not know, as he 
was a man of much dignity with an impassible face. It was 
impossible to see whether he felt inwardly glad that the end 
had finally come, or felt sad over the result; he was too manly 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 87 

to show it. Whatever his feelings were they were entirely 
concealed from my observation, but my own feelings, which 
had been jubilant at receiving his letter, were sad and de- 
pressed. I felt like anything rather than rejoicing at the 
downfall of a foe who had fought so long and valiantly, and 
had suffered so much for a cause I believed one of the worst 
for which a people ever fought, and one for which there was 
the least cause. I do not question, however, tbe sincerity of 
the great mass of those who were opposed to us. 

General Lee was dressed in full uniform, which was en- 
tirely new, and was wearing a sword of considerable value, 
very likely the one which had been presented to him by the 
State of Virginia. In my rough traveling suit, the uniform 
of a private with the straps of a Lieutenant General, I must 
have contrasted very strangely with a man so handsomely 
dressed, six feet high, and of faultness form; but this was not 
a matter I thought of until afterwards. 

When the news of the surrender first reached our lines 
our men commenced firing a salute of one hundred guns in 
honor of the victory. T at once sent word to have it stopped; 
the Confederates were now our prisoners, and we did nqt want 
to exult over their downfall. 

As soon as the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia 
was completed, General Grant went immediately to Washing- 
ton. He sent Sherman the terms on which Lee had surren- 
dered, and authorized him to offer the same terms to Johnston, 
but Sherman added other conditions — political — but, know- 
ing he was going beyond Grant's terms, he made them condi- 
tional until they could be ratified at Washington. Grant says 
that Sherman, then being one of the most popular Generals in 
the land, was later denounced by President Johnson and Secre- 
tary Stanton in most bitter terms. A message was sent out di- 
recting troops in the South not to obey Sherman, and to all 
commanders in the country not to reeognize his orders or 
paroles. 

Grant was ordered to immediately proceed to North Caro- 
lina and take charge. Of course Grant was greatly annoyed 
at this uncalled for denunciation of Sherman, but started im- 
mediately for Raleigh as quietly as possible, in hopes of seeing 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 



Sherman without his army knowing of his presence. He met 
Sherman, gave him his orders, and left Sherman to communi- 
cate them to Johnston, and left immediately for Washington, 
leaving Sherman to negotiate the terms of the surrender sole- 
ly by himself, free and untrammeled, and without the enemy 
knowing that he (Grant) had been anywhere near the field. 
Grant says that as he returned he met the mail with newspapers 
and found in them news of the great excitement in the North 
over the terms Sherman gave Johnston, and the harsh orders 
promulgated by the President and Secretary of War. and 
says : 

I fully understood what great indignation this would 
cause Sherman, though I do not think his feelings could have 
been more excited than mine. 

Where is there in all history a story of such magnanimity, 
not only to the enemy, but to his own devoted comrade? 
These two incidents were quoted to me in Europe as fixing the 
status of General Grant as a great, humane soldier, and as in- 
dicating the elements that afterwards created a great states- 
man. 

In the campaign from May 5th, 1864, to Appomattox, the 
Armies of the Potomac and James lost over 60,000 men, killed 
and wounded, and in prisoners and missing over 20,000 — a 
total of over 82,000. This indicates the desperate fighting and 
appalling results. Under any other commander it would have 
brought about a halt and discouragement, but under Grant it 
simply meant more determined efforts. He knew that the 
enemy's losses were as great as his, and if he continued on the 
aggressive sooner or later he would win. 

His determination, after Appomattox, that Lee's and all 
other armies should be protected in their paroles, is illustrated 
by his visit to President Johnson when Judge Underwood of 
Norfolk proposed to punish some of the leaders of the rebel- 
lion, notwithstanding their paroles. Grant demanded that an 



Personal Kecollections of Grant. 89 

order should be issued prohibiting such an act. President 
Johnson was obstinate until Grant declared that if it was done 
he would hand in his resignation. That settled it, and brought 
quiet and peace to all the rebel forces. This action of Gen- 
eral Grant's has been greatly misrepresented, for on Memorial 
day, May 30, 1906, accompanied by General F. D. Grant, his 
wife, and others, I attended memorial services at Grant's Tomb 
in New York City. The address there was made by Judge 
Stafford of the United States District Court of Washington, in 
which he made the following statement : 

Not long after the death of Lincoln, Johnson summoned 
Grant to the White House. When they were alone he said: "I 
intend to fix it forever in the minds of the American people 
that secession is a crime. I intend to have all Confederate 
officers and officials put to a public death." Grant made no 
reply when Johnson had finished his harangue, but rose in sil- 
ence to take his leave. ''What do you mean to do?" asked John- 
son. Then Grant said. "I am going to the camp; I shall move 
my army upon Washington, I shall proclaim martial law 
and take command. My reason for doing so is this : I received 
the surrender of General Lee, which ended the war. That 
surrender put into my hands the lives and safety of every 
officer and official on the Confederate side, and T hold myself 
in duty and honor bound to see that they are protected ac- 
cording to the rules of war and common right." Grant re- 
turned to his camp, issued the necessary orders, and waited for 
the proclamation to be made. Then he received the word that 
Johnson had changed his mind. 

This was such a remarkable statement in which there was 
absolutely not a word of truth that it astonished both General 
Grant and myself, and as soon as the oration was delivered, I 
went to the speaker and absolutely denied that there was any 
truth in his statement. 

He said he obtained the information from Admiral Dahl- 
gren. I was in hopes no notice would be taken of it, and there- 
fore said nothing more about it. But the Press got hold of it 
and, of course, commenced to handle it, and for the purpose 
of showing the absurdity of it, at a meeting of the Society of 



90. Personal Recollections' of Grant. 

the Army of the Tennessee at Council Bluffs, Iowa, on No- 
vember 8th, 1906, General John C. Black called the attention 
of that Society to this statement, and as General Grant had 
been a prominent member of the Soceity, asked that a com- 
mittee be appointed to take the matter up and make report, 
which was unanimously adopted, and as President of the So- 
ciety I appointed as members of that committee, General John 
C. Black, General 0. 0. Howard, Major V. Warner and Mrs. 
John A. Logan. 

That committee reported on November 9th as follows: 

GENERAL BLACK'S REPORT. 

Council Bluffs, Iowa, November 9th, 1906. 
To the Society of the Army of the Tennessee : 

Your committee to whom you referred a motion made 
at the business session of the morning of November 8th, that 
a committee of three or more be appointed to whom should be 
referred the accusation made at the Tomb of Grant on the 
30th of May last, and all the proof accessible and bearing upon 
said accusation, and to make report of their conclusions, beg 
leave to report that they have examined the matters referred 
to in said motion and find that during an address delivered on 
Memorial Day, 1906, at the Tomb of General U. S. Grant, a for- 
mer member of the Society, former commander-in-chief of the 
army of the United States, and former President, the following 
statement was made, in substance: 

Not long after the death of Lincoln, Johnson sum- 
moned Grant to the White House. When they were alone he 
said: "I intend to fix it forever in the minds of the American 
people that secession is a crime. I intend to have all Confed- 
erate officers and officials put to a public death." Grant made 
no reply when Johnson had finished his harangue, but rose in 
silence to take his leave. "What do you mean to do?" asked 
Johnson. Then Grant said: 'I am going back to the camp; 
I shall move my army upon Washington; I shall proclaim 
martial law and take command. My reason for so doing is 
this: T received the surrender of General Lee, which ended 
the war. That surrender put into my hands the lives and safe- 
ty of every officer and official on the Confederate side, and I 
hold myself in duty and honor bound to see that they are 
protected according to the rules of war and common right. 
You can communicate with me at my headquarters." Grant 
returned to his camp, issued the necessary orders, and waited 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 91 

for the proclamation to be made. Then he received word 
that Johnson had changed his mind. 

Your committee further finds, as a matter of history, 
that the interview alleged to have been had between the 
President and General Grant must have occurred, if at all, 
while the armies of the United States were in camp in the 
vicinity of Washington, prior to, or about the time of the 
Grand Review ; that thereafter and from the 12th of August, 
1867, to January 13th, 1868, General Grant was the Secretary 
of War, ad interim, acting on the appointment of President 
Johnson; that in view of all the circumstances, as shown by 
the reports from the War Department and well established 
facts of history, it was impossible for such an interview to 
have taken place, or for such a declaration to have been made 
by General Grant, and especially that no such orders were 
ever issued by him looking to the overthrow of rightful author- 
ity and the placing of the capital of his country under mar- 
tial law. 

Whatever may be our individual views as to the charac- 
ter of the man who then was President of the United States, 
we know that the declaration by General Grant of such an 
intention and the issuing of orders by him as Commander-in- 
Chief of the armies of the United States, as alleged, would 
have been an act of flagrant treason, for war was then still 
the legal status in the United States. We are convinced by 
the evidence and our knowledge of the man that our great 
Commander never made any intimation, expression or orders, 
or did any act that might have been disastrous to the laws 
or destructive to the liberties of his country. On the other 
hand, we know that every act of his public, life as a soldier 
and as a civilian showed unfaltering regard for the law and 
devotion to the liberties of the country, as well as a scrupu- 
lous regard for the preservation of our laws and the sanctity 
of the constitution. We have searched in vain for any record of 
any act of our great Comrade, in the midst of all the vicissi- 
tudes of his life, that could be construed into a treasonable at- 
tempt: and we present this report as the reply of the Army of 
the Tennessee, of which he was the first Commander, and to 
whom his fame now is and ever will be very dear, to every 
charge, from what source soever emanating, that would con- 
nect his name with an act treasonable to the country and de- 
structive to its government. 
Respectfnllv submitted, 

OLIVER OTIS HOWARD. 

MRS. JOHN A. LOG AX. 

V. WARNER, 

JOHN C. BLACK, Chairman. 



92 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

They also submitted the following papers and documents : 
From letter of General John C. Black, July 3d, 1906, to Gen- 
eral Robert Shaw Oliver. Assistant Secretary of War: 

1 have the honor to request that you will kindly advise 
me whether there is or is not any proof in the records of the 
War Department of the foregoing statement, or any material 
part thereof. If there is such proof, I will thank you for an 
exhibition of it, or a reference to it, that I may examine it. 
If there is no such proof I hope that you will so state to me. 

War Department, The Military Sect. Office, 

Washington/ July 5th, 1906. 
(Respectfully returned to the Assistant Secretary of War. 
Nothing has been found of record in this office, either to 
prove or disprove the statement made within, or any material 
part thereof. 

The only papers that have been found of record, and that 
appear to have even a remote bearing on the subject in ques- 
tion, are letters from General Lee to General Grant, and Gen- 
eral Grant to General Lee, published in the official records of 
the Union and Confederate armies. Series 1, Vol. 46, Part III. 
Pages 1275 and 1286. 

F. C. AINSWORTH, 
Military Secretary. 

War Department, July 6th, 190ti. 
So far as the records of the War Department are con- 
cerned, the statements submitted by you regarding General 
Grant's aetion are without any foundation whatever. 

ROBERT SHAW OLIVER. 

Assistant Secretary of War. 

On the 8th of July. 1906, the following was written by 
Major-General Frederick D. Grant, United States Army: 

Your letter enclosing an extract from the address deliv- 
ered at my father's tomb on May 30th is received. With ref- 
erence to the said statement, I can only say that T have. heard 
my father speak of this interview with President Johnson, 
when the arrests of General R. E. Lee and other Confederate 
officers were contemplated by the President. The statement 
that father always made in my presence was that he (General 
Grant) had protested against such action being taken as the 
arrest of the Confederate officers, so long as they observed 
their parole, as they had surrendered to him (General Grant). 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 93 



upon terms which he, as Commander of the United States army, 
had a legal right to grant or dictate, and if our government 
violated these terms agreed upon, it would discredit him as 
well as our government, and that in case of this arrest of 
these Confederates he would be obliged to resign his commis- 
sion in the United States army. 

In the above I am giving you almost father's exact words. 
I heard him make this statement frequently, and what is at- 
tributed to father in the incident as related does not at all 
harmonize with my father's character, and in my mind it is 
absolutely impossible. The speaker was of course misin- 
formed. 

FREDERICK D. GRANT. 

Upon the report of this committee, I stated to the Society 
the actual facts in relation to what did occur at the time that 
President Johnson ordered the arrest and execution of Gen- 
eral Lee and others, as stated by a member of President John- 
son's cabinet, as follows: _ 

After the assassination of Mr. Lincoln, the Cabinet met in 
the Treasury Department and passed a resolution to arrest 
and try by Military Commission, the leading men of the Con- 
federacy, beginning with President Davis, General R. E. Lee, 
and others; meaning thereby to strike terror into the hearts of 
the southern people. They concluded to carry out this resolu- 
tion, and General Grant must give the required orders. 

General Grant at that time was seeking rest on the banks 
of the Delaware. He was telegraphed to come immediately to 
Washington. Mr. Garrett, the President of the Baltimore & 
Ohio Railroad, was at that moment in Washington, and was 
instructed by Sec. Stanton to go forthwith to Baltimore in a 
single express car, there to meet General Grant and bring him 
to Washington as quickly as possible. He was also told by 
Sec. Stanton to inform General Grant of the resolutirm passed, 
which he was expected to execute. 

Mr. Garrett gives the following account of Avhat General 
Grant said when the message was delivered to him in the car : 

These gentlemen do not reflect that such an action would 
be a stain upon the escutcheon of the country, which never 



\ 



94 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

could be wiped out. The assassination seems to have unsettled 
their wits, to think that such men as General Lee and President 
Davis had an} r thing to do with the murder. These are gen- 
tlemen whom I have known and esteemed for years, and who 
are incapable of crime — as well suspect myself. 

In response Mr. Garrett said, "Well General, the Cabinet 
are waiting only for you to give the orders, and you will go 
into that matter as soon as you get there. I hope when you do 
that you will speak to them just as you have now done to me." 
Then came the reply: "I shall go further, I shall tell them 
that they must first take my sword from me." 

Mr. Garrett says upon their arrival, General Grant went 
directly into the Cabinet room, and he remained in the corri- 
dor. After some time the Postmaster General came out and 
approached him. Mr. Garrett said, "I don't wish to pry into 
the judges' confidence or secrets, but you know the message 
with which I was charged. When I delivered it to General 
Grant, he said that he would tell you gentlemen that you 
must first take his sword from him." The answer was, "He 
has done that very thing Mr. Garrett." 

Mr. Stanton, Secretary of War, also confirmed this to Mr. 
Garrett. 

Grant considered the action of France in building a mon- 
archy on the ruins of Mexico, during the Civil War, as an act 
of War against the United States, but the condition of the 
United States rendered it impossible for them to interfere, and 
it is a very remarkable fact that on the surrender of Vicksburg 
he was so thoughtful of the future, and displayed that re- 
markable statesmanship that in later years won the admira- 
tion of the world. Washington was asking for reinforcements 
for other armies, and again distributing his victorious arm- 
ies, which he wished to use, Grant, in answer to ,a letter from 
Lincoln, wrote the President as follows : 

Vicksburg, August 9th, 1863. 
In view of present events in Mexico, I am greatly im- 
pressed with the importance of re-establishing the National 
authority in Western Texas as soon as possible, anil he said he 
was ready to send a portion of his command to occupy the 
Rio Grande River, facing Mexico. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 95 

It is now a matter of history that as soon as Lee surren- 
dered, Grant immediately telegraphed to the Government that 
action should be taken to force the French out of Mexico ; that 
Mexico was a friendly nation, and that they should be aided. 
Our Government acted, not by forcing the French out of that 
country, but by sending General Schofield to Europe, to make 
known to the French Government the feeling of our country 
and its determination to aid Mexico, if necessary, and, as is 
known Napoleon immediately telegraphed the French Army 
to evacuate, but Maximilian declined to go. He was made to 
believe he had a following in Mexico that would enable him 
to maintain his monarchy. 

As soon as General Grant distributed the army, he placed 
Sheridan on the Rio Grande with a view of crossing, if neces- 
sary. I was in comand of the Department of Missouri at that 
time, and received orders to prepare to go to New Mexico 
with a view of occupying Chihuahua and Sonora, if deemed 
expedient. Nothing ever came from these movements, but 
General Frederick D. Grant says that he found, in a private 
letter book of General Grant's, two confidential letters to 
Sheridan, telling him he must look out; that the administra- 
tion was opposed to breaking neutrality, but if he believed 
that Santa Anna, who was on the border, was favorable to 
Jaurzez, then he could befriend him, and also said there were 
lots of arms left by soldiers on both sides, and if they fell into 
Jaurzez 's hands he (Grant) did not care, and Sheridan could 
lose them; he also said that some five or six of our batteries 
and some 40,000 stands of arms were lost in that way. Grant 
also informed Sheridan that if any of these arms or artillery 
fell into the hands of Maximilian he would have to account for 
them, thus showing plainly his views in the matter, also those 
of the Government. Mexico, of course, was aware of the 
friendship on the part of Grant, and was always devoted to 
him. Its representative in Washington always attended the 



b>6 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

yearly banquet in New York City on General Grant's birth- 
day, and I heard Minister Romero, at a dinner given General 
Grant, give a detailed account of all the actions of General 
Grant in their behalf, things that had never been spoken be- 
fore. General Grant was present and admitted that they 
were true. 

After the war General Grant took a great interest in the 
development of Mexico. When President Diaz was here in 
1883, he gave him a noted dinner at the Union League Club 
of New York, on April 4th, at which thirty-six of the most 
prominent people in New York were present. At that dinner 
President Diaz made known the great friendship of General 
Grant for his nation, and their appreciation of it. After Gen- 
eral Grant returned to private life, he was interested in and 
was President of a railroad running from the City of Mexico 
to the Pacific Coast, through the State of Oaxaca, which was 
President Diaz's home. I was at that time building a road 
from Laredo to the City of Mexico, and General Grant induced 
me to become Vice President of his company and make sur- 
veys for that line, and he put forth his greatest efforts to 
complete it. The financial condition of the country became 
such that the work on both lines was suspended, and while 
the line to the City of Mexico has since been completed, the 
other is just reaching the Pacific. 

In the winter of 1864-65 the Confederates, who controlled 
the Indian Territory, had sowed a great deal of dissension 
among the Indian tribes north of the Arkansas River, until 
they became very aggressive along the three lines of commun- 
ication between the Atlantic and Pacific, the Arkansas, South 
Platte and North Platte, and the unfortunate attack of Col- 
onel Chivington on a friendly band of Indians on the Big 
Sandy, near old Fort Lyon, on the Arkansas River, had aroused 
all the Sioux nation. These disturbances had stopped the 
mails, also pretty much all travel between the Territories, Cali- 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 97 

fornia, and the Missouri River, and there was a great outcry 
and demand that troops be sent into that country to open it 
General Curtis, who commanded the Indian country at that 
time, did not think that a winter campaign could be made in 
that country, and so expressed himself to the War Depart- 
ment. 

About January 1, 1865, General Grant wired me, asking if 
a winter campaign could be made on the plains. He knew I 
had had a great deal of experience on the plains during the 
ten years preceding the war. I answered that it could, if the 
troops were properly prepared, and immediately received an 
order from him to proceed to Fort Leavenworth, where I would 
receive orders. On arriving there I found that the Depart- 
ment of Kansas and Territories had been merged into my 
command — the Department of the Missouri — and its command- 
ing officer relieved and also found a dispatch there telling me 
to open up the stage and telegraph lines through to California 
This was a great surprise to me, and, of course, came from 
the dispatch I had sent General Grant. I knew there was no 
way to accomplish this except to take the field myself, which 
I immediately did, and by the first of March, 1864, had opened 
all the telegraph lines, had put the stages on again, and had 
communication through to California 

It was a very severe winter campaign — the worst winter I 
ever saw on the plains. In March we had the worst storm I 
ever saw, and a battalion of Pawnee scouts I had there nearly 
perished in the storm, losing all their stock. 

As soon as I had finished this campaign, which was only a 
temporary one, I was immediately ordered to prepare a gen- 
eral campaign for that summer and fall, which would force 
peace with all the Indians from the Red River on the south 
to the British possessions on the north. This campaign was a 
long one, taking from July, 1865, until the spring of 1866. 
My troops marched from the Arkansas to the Yellowstone, and 



98 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

fought many battles. Right after the battle of Tongue River, 
where General Conner's command fought the Northern Chey- 
ennes and Arapahoes, and nearly wiped out these bands, in- 
cluding their women and some of their children, there was a 
great outcry throughout the country, as the battalion of 
Pawnee Indians that was in the fight did some promiscuous 
scalping. General Grant wired me to close up the campaign 
and bring the Indians to Laramie and make peace with them. 
I protested, and stated that if they would give me three 
months longer I would answer with my life for the settling all 
the Indian difficulties. General Grant's answer was that the 
President was so urgent in the matter, and that there was 
such a pressure upon him; that I must close the campaign and 
bring the Indians in. This was a fatal mistake, and gave the 
Indians the idea that they were the victors instead of our- 
selves, and the result was to bring, later on, a war with the 
Apaches and Commanches, the Sioux and the Sitting Bull 
war, in which General Custer lost his life and command in 
the campaign of General Terry. 

Grant's disappointment at the sudden closing of this cam- 
paign was equal to my own, but, as his dispatches show, there 
was no consideration given to the judgment of the officers in 
the field or on the ground. 

1 had expected to leave the army early in 1865, but the 
Indian campaign kept me in the field until 1866. 1 resigned in 
March and was given a leave of absence in May, and bid fare- 
well to the army in this letter. 

Omaha, July 16th, 1866. 
General U. S. Grant. 

General : — I am now a citizen but still take great inter- 
est in the army, and shall always give it what aid there is in 
my power. I know that to your unfailing support and your 
confidence in me, I am greatly indebted for what little success 
I may have achieved, and I desire now to thank you. I hope 
I may be able some day to partly return it. "Wherever for- 
tune may hereafter place me, T shall never forget that all true 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 99 

soldiers owe to you more than they can ever repay, and that 
the country can never reward your successful labor for it in the 
army. I grew up under your's, Sherman's and McPherson's 
orders and guidance, and I shall take into civil life my lesson 
that will be of lasting benefit to me. I trust if I can ever be 
of service to you in any way that you will not fail to com- 
mand me, and that you will visit our section of the country in 
some of your travels. We are fast civilizing this western 
country, and I believe our railroad will do more towards tam- 
ing the Indians than all else combined. General Sherman was 
here to see me a short time ago. 

I am truly yours, 

G. M. DODGE. 

At the end of the war General Grant had a desire to re- 
ward a certain number of the Volunteer Generals that had 
served under him in the army, who had not gone into the 
regular army, and he proposed the passage of a bill appoint- 
ing a certain number of Major-Generals and Brigadier-Gen- 
erals in the regular army for life. On this list he placed me 
at the head to be a Major-General in the regular army. It 
would have been impossible for me to have accepted the posi- 
tion, as T was under contract at the time in building the 
Union Pacific Railway. General Grant greatly desired, at the 
end of the war, that T should remain in the army, and kept me 
in over a year after the volunteer forces were mustered out, 
but General Sherman, who knew my connection with the 
Union Pacific, took my view of the matter, and advised me 
not to remain in the army. His letter giving me leave of ab- 
sence to take the position of Chief Engineer of the Union 
Pacific indicates his views on this question very clearly. 

In November, 1866, I was elected to Congress from the 
State of Iowa, and took my seat in December, 1867. General 
Grant was then commander of the army, with headquarters in 
Washington, and we were together very often. I was a mem- 
ber of the Military Committee of the House, and the re-organ- 
ization of the army was one of the important things before us. 
There was a great conflict as to what measure should be 



tOO PE RSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF GrAN'J . 

passed between our Chairman. General James A. Garfield, and 
General B. F. Butler. It was a difficult problem to reduce the 
army to a minimum and take care of the large number of offi- 
cers who had been appointed to the regular army, and were 
then under commission. The views of General Grant were 
not the views of the Committee, but when the conflict in the 
House became acute I offered a substitute for all the bills, 
which simply provided for the minimum strength of the army, 
and left it to the Commander-in-Chief, General Grant, to make 
the reduction in such manner as he considered would be to the 
best interests of the service. This substitute was passed, and 
[ received credit, as a new member, of defeating two such old 
and prominent members as Garfield and Butler. 

•"> During this time also the conflict between President An- 
drew Johnson and General Grant occurred. There was living 
with me at that time the Honorable James F. Wilson of Iowa, 
Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, having in charge 
the reconstruction measures. He was a prominent leader of the 
House, in whom Generals Grant and Rawlins had great confi- 
dence, and all the correspondence that passed between Grant 
and Johnson was brought to me by General Rawlins, and sub 
mitted by me to Representative Wilson, who thought Grant 
showed a grasp and insight of the question that was most sur- 
prising, and he had no reason to suggest any changes, but ap 

. proved entirely General Grant's position and contentions in 

\_the matter. 

Soon afterwards General Grant was nominated for the 
Presidency on the Republican ticket, and General Frank P 
Blair for Vice President on the Democratic ticket. General 
Blair was at that time a United States Commissioner, accept- 
ing each section of twenty miles of the Union Pacific Rail- 
way as it was built, with headquarters at Fort Sanders, 
Wyoming. General Grant came to Omaha to go over the road 
with me, and General Blair happening to arrive at Omaha at 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 101 

the same time, I took them both in my car to the end of the 
Union Pacific Railway. Blair had been a fine soldier, com- 
manding a Brigade, Division and Corps under Grant, and 
Grant had referred to him in his reports in the highest terms. 
When they met they were as cordial and chatty as though 
they were political friends. Blair's contention was that if 
Grant was elected President it was one step towards placing 
the country under a monarchy, for he believed, with the faith 
the people had in him, his party would take the benefit and 
make him a permanent President, but ,one knowing Grant as 
I did knew he was the last person to think of such a result, 
much less be a party to it. The population along the line of 
the Union Pacific Railway, and the working parties were many 
of them rebels who had gone into the plains rather than go 
into the Confederate army, or be sent through our lines into 
the Confederate lines. There had also concentrated along the 
line and on the work a great many Confederate soldiers I had 
enlisted from among the Confederate prisoners of war to so 
on the plains and fight the Indian campaigns. 

Naturally this population was for the democratic ticket. 
The presence of Grant and Blair on the line was known, and 
at every stopping place the people congregated and were all 
anxious to see Grant, and demanded that Blair, who was 
known as a fine speaker, should talk to them on the politiea} 
question. Grant urged Blair to comply with their wishes, but 
Blair responded that the presence of Grant, for whom he had 
the highest admiration personally, made it impossible for him 
to talk to them on politics, and stating that he intended to be 
down the road again in a short time, and it would then give 
him pleasure to expound to them the principles of his party 
which, of course, satisfied them 

Soon after I left the service, I was sued for over thirty 
thousand dollars in the United States courts in Kansas 
for seizing, by order of Mr. Stanton, Secretary of War, a 



102 Personal Ijecollections of Grant. 

lot of horses and mules thai had been driven into Kansas 
from the Indian Territory — the prosecutors claiming them as 
private property. Winn T appealed to the Government to de- 
fend the suit il developed that there was no way it could do 
so, and that there was no law protecting an officer for acts 
committed while in the service, no matter whose orders he 
obeyed, from civil suit, so judgment was given against me and 
all my property levied upon. You can imagine that I was 
greatly disturbed, as was General Grant, and he said, if he 
was elected President, one of his first acts would be to have 
laws passed protecting all officers for military acts committed 
while in the service, and one to relieve me. Blair said: "As 
I am certain to be elected, I will also see that it is done." 

And I felt at ease if T could keep off the execution until after 
election. Grant was elected, and the next Congress passed a 
law protecting officers who had been in the Government Serv- 
ice, and the Government also paid the judgment against me. 

In the spring of 1868, during the building of the Cnion 
Pacific Railroad, the company gave the chief of construction. 
Mr. T. C. Durant, entire charge, not only of the building of 
the lines, but also of the surveys for the company. The desire 
of the construction company to make headway and meet the 
Central Pacific as far west as possible, caused them to change 
a portion of my lines west of the Black Hills. 1 entered h 
protest against this, and notified the Company that if my lines 
were changed without notifying me it would be necessary for 
me to resign. I was acting in a double capacity, as chief engi- 
neer for the railway, Generals Grant and Sherman also hold- 
ing me accountable for carrying out the instructions of the 
(government. The Government heard of this action of the 
Company, and Generals Grant and Sherman, accompanied by 
Generals Kautz, Sheridan, Dent, Gibbon, Harney, Potter and 
Hunt, came to Fort Sanders, Wyoming Territory, to visit me, 
and consult with me in the matter. At that time 1 was in Salt 




— Co 0) o 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 103 

Lake City, but received a dispatch from T. C. Durant, chief of 
the construction force, to come to Fort Sanders to meet them, 
and at the same time requesting me to withdraw my resigna- 
tion. 

When I arrived at Fort Sanders, I. found that Grant and 
Sherman had stated very emphatically, to the Union Pacific 
people, that my lines must be maintained or the Government 
would take action in the matter ; that they knew me and had 
confidence in me, and there was no person whom they could 
make chief engineer to whom they would give the authority 
they had given me for calling upon the commanders for troops 
for escorts, and upon the pnsts for supplies, etc, that we might 
need. 

Generals Grant and Sherman were all the time in commun- 
ication with me, and both took as much interest in the building 
of the railway as I did. Their visit to the line was of great 
benefit, for it put an end to a great deal of friction that exist- 
ed on the Union Pacific Railway, between the company and 
the contractors, and from that time on I never had any trouble ; 
in fact the control of the construction of the road was vir- 
tually turned over to me. 

General Grant in his first administration appointed A. G. 
Burlingame as Minister to China. He took a high position at 
the Chinese court, and returned to this country with authority 
to arrange for many innovations in China, among them great 
internal improvements, including' railroads. 

Minister Burlingame applied to General Grant for some one 
to take charge of the building of the railways. contemplated by 
the Chinese Government, and General Grant recommended 
me. I had then completed the building of the Union Pacific 
Railway, and at Grant's urgent request accepted the position, 
and commenced arranging my affairs to accompany Minister 
Burlingame on his return to China. He went to Europe and 
while there died, and. with him seems to have died all the 
modern views and efforts of the Chinese Government. 



104 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

These efforts of Burlingame in China came through Grant's 
great influence there, for probably there is no nation he vis- 
ited that was more impressed with Grant than the Chinese, 
and during his life and after his death they paid him great re- 
spect, and I have no doubt if Burlingame had lived and con- 
tinued his efforts, with the support of General Grant, he would 
have been able to carry out many of the reforms that were 
contemplated. 

It is a singular fact that the Chinese seem never to forget 
anything, for in 1883, when I was building railways in Texas, 
the Chinese Government again took this matter up, and remem- 
bering the recommendation of General Grant, they sent to me 
in Texas and renewed the request to visit China for the same 
purpose, but I was then unable to accept, and had to decline. 

The Society of the Army of the Tennessee was organized 

at Raleigh, North Carolina, on April 14, 1865. General Grant 

took great interest in this Society, and at its first meeting 

he wrote this letter to the Society, and his tribute to his old 

army is the most sincere and the most complete of any T have 

ever seen : 

Washington, D. C, November 11th. 1866. 
Dear General : 

It is with great disappointment that 1 have to announce, 
at the last moment, my inability to attend the meeting of the 
Society of the Army of the Tennessee, on the 14th inst. I find 
it will be impossible for me to be absent from the city, for the 
present, for so long a time as it would take me to go to Cincin- 
nati and return. 

I regret not being able to attend the first meeting of the 
Society, composed in whole of officers of the army which 
formed "my first command" in the terrible Rebellion, and with 
which I felt myself identified to the end of its service. 

When my command was less than an "army" it was com- 
posed of troops which formed the nucleus of the "Army of 
the Tennessee" in its organization into an army. 

It was the first army I had the honor to command, and 
to the end of the Rebellion it was an integral and important 
part of the force which I had the honor to direct, through the 
ablest and most distinguished officers of any service 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 105 

It is a proud record the Army of the Tennessee gained 
during the Rebellion. As an army it never sustained a de- 
feat during the four years of Avar. No officer was ever as- 
signed to the command of that army who had afterwards to 
be relieved from duty, or reduced to a less command. Such 
a history is not by accident nor wholly due to sagacity in the 
selection of commanders. 

Again permit me to express through you to the Society 
of the Army of the Tennessee my deep regret at not being able 
to be with you on the interesting occasion of its first meeting. 

T have the honor to he with great respect, 

Your obedient servant, 
TT. S. GRANT. General. 

A speech that called attention to General Grant, and which 
was one of the most notable of his life, was made at the Re- 
union of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee at Des 
Moines, Iowa, September 29, 1875. Vigorous and vital in 
thought, sagacious and sublime in statesmanship, it stands in 
history as a most notable utterance-. 

General Grant said : 

Comrades : — It always affords me much gratification to 
meet my old comrades-in-arms of ten to fourteen years ago. 
and to live over again the trials and hardships of those days — 
hardships imposed for the preservation and perpetuation of 
our free institutions. We believed then, and believe now, 
that we had a Government worth fighting for, and if need be, 
dying for. How many of our comrades of those days paid the 
latter price for our preserved Union. Let their heroism and 
sacrifices be ever green in our memory. Let not the results of 
their sacrifices be destroyed. The Union and the free institu- 
tions for which they fell, should be held more dear for their 
sacrifices. We will not deny to any of those who fought 
against us any privileges under the Government which we 
claim for ourselves. On the contrary, we welcome all such 
who come forward in good faith to help build up the waste 
places and to perpetuate our institutions against all enemies, 
as brothers in full interest with us in a common heritage. But 
we are not prepared to apologize for the part we took in the 
great struggle. It is to be hoped that like trials will never 
befall our country. In this sentiment no class of people can 
more heartily join than the soldiers who submitted to the 
dangers, trials and hardships of the camp and battlpfifld, on 



106 Personal Rjecollections of Grant. 

whichever side he may have fought. No class of people is 
more interested in guarding against a recurrence of those 
days. Let us then begin by guarding against every enemy 
threatening the perpetuity of free republican institutions. T 
do not bring into this fair assemblage politics, certainly not 
partisan politics; but it is a fair subject for our deliberation, 
to consider what may be necessary to secure the prize for 
which they battled. In a republic like ours, where the citizen 
is the sovereign, and the official, servant — where no power is 
exercised except by the will of the people, it is important that 
the sovereign — the people — should possess intelligence. The 
free school is the promoter of that intelligence which is to 
preserve us as a free nation. If we are to have another con- 
test, in the near future of our national existence, I predict that 
the dividing line will not be the Mason and Dixon's, but be- 
tween patriotism and intelligence on the one side, and super- 
stition, ambition and ignorance on the other. Now, in this 
centennial year of our national existence, I believe it a good 
time to begin the work of strengthening the foundation of 
the house commenced by our patriotic forefathers one hun- 
dred years ago at Concord and Lexington. Let us all labor to 
add all needful guarantees for the more perfect security of 
free thought, free speech and a free press ; pure morals, un- 
fettered religious sentiments, and of equal rights and privil- 
eges to all men, irrespective of nationality, color or religion. 

Encourage free schools, and resolve that not one dollar of 
money appropriated to their support, no matter how raised, 
shall be appropriated to the support of any sectarian school. 
Resolve that either the State or Nation, or both combined, 
shall support institutions of learning sufficient to afford, to 
every child growing up in the land, the opportunity of a 
good, common school education, unmixed with sectarian, pagan 
or atheistical tenets. Leave the matter of religion to the 
family circle, the church, and the private school, supported en- 
tirely by private contribution. Keep the church and state for- 
ever separate. With these safeguards I believe the battle 
which created us, "The Army of the Tennessee." will not have 
been fought in vain. 

In 1867, while I was building the Union Pacific Railway, 
General Grant suggested that I should take with me on some 
of my overland trips Brigadier-General John A. Rawlins, his 
Chief of Staff, who had been his ablest and most devoted 
friend and admirer, thinking the trip would benefit Rawlins, 
who Avas failing in health. The four- months we were in 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 107 

camp together were delightful ones to me, for I listened to the 
story of Grant's campaign, and the many incidents that oc- 
curred that never got into the reports, with great benefit and 
satisfaction, as no one could describe them as Rawlins did. 
He explained to me many of the problems of the war that I 
did not fully understand; Grant's actions in great emer- 
gencies, meeting the great obstacles in his "way ; the almost 
unsurmountable difficulties he had to overcome, but in all the 
dark days he never for one moment lost heart or faith, or 
doubted the result. Rawlins became Grant's first Secretary of 
War. When he died in September, 1869, Grant desired to give 
me the place, but my duties with the Union Pacific Railway. 
prevented it. 

in 1877 General Grant started on his trip around the world. 
I was with him in Paris. I had a house on the Boulevard 
Houseman. The attention paid him in Paris, and the consid- 
eration he received, not only officially, but from the private 
citizens, occupied nearly all his time, and whenever he had 
an hour to himself he would come up to my house to sit and 
smoke his cigar, and have a complete rest. We were in the 
habit of going to the Champs Elysees and sit there watching 
the erowds. I had with me my youngest daughter, and Gen- 
eral Grant would take her and go into the Punch and Judy 
shows and stay an hour or more with her, and seemed to enjoy 
it as fully as she did. He was more interested in the people, 
in what they did, and in the manufactures, etc., of the coun- 
try, than anything else, and was absolutely opposed to pa- 
rades and reviews, and never wanted to go near the army. He 
apparently took no interest in military matters of any kind, 
ft was a singular trait of character that a man who had han- 
dled as many hundreds of thousands of men and fought as 
many battles as he had, should have such an aversion to look- 
ing on troops, or having them brought out in any demonstra- 
tion for him. He had to attend in Paris three or four cere 



108 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF GRANT. 

monies each day, and how he stood it and maintained his 
health as well as he did was beyond my conception, for it was 
impossible for me to stand any such strain. His visits to the 
Champs Elysees seemed to be of great relief to him, and ap- 
parently changed him from a great General and President to 
a simple boy. 

During the time General Grant was writing his Memoirs 
I was in the habit of visiting him when I was in New York, 
and sitting some hours with him, and he would often read to 
me some portions of what he had written. Illustrating what 
an extraordinary memory he had, he read to me a portion of 
what he had written about me, and the rebuilding of the 
Nashville & Decatur Railway. As this work had not im- 
pressed itself upon my mind as it had upon his, as it was no 
unusual thing to me, I listened to what he read, and said that 
my recollection of it was not as he had written it, which 
seemed to surprise him, and he said if that was so he would 
have to change it. I said not to change it; that I would go to 
my office and look over my records, which I did. I had to 
sit down the next morning and write him a letter, telling him 
that his recollection of what I had done was absolutely cor- 
rect, while my own was absolutely wrong, and the chapter 
stood as he had written it. 

Mr. N. E. Dawson, the Secretary to whom he dic- 
tated the greater part of the second volume of his Memoirs, 
says the few corrections they had to make of dates and 
data of all kinds showed a wonderful accuracy in all 
his statements, that the work they had to do was to ar- 
range the different subjects in chronological order, and I know 
from my own examination that his first volume, written in his 
own hand, has very few interlineations. The Secretary also 
said that General Grant seemed to maintain himself during 
the dictating of the last volume by a strong will to live until 
it was completed, and after he had written it all out and read 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 109 

it to him, and it was virtually completed, that moment he im- 
mediately began to fail, and in ten days thereafter was dead 
On December 8th, 1884, I received this letter from Gen- 
eral Grant, and Major-General Frederick D. Grant says this 
letter was the last letter General Grant wrote by his own hand. 

„. ^ ,, ,, , New York, Dec. 8th, 1884. 

My Dear General Dodge : 

I am sorry to trouble you and would not but for the cir- 
cumstances under which I am placed. Since my injury of 
nearly a year ago I have grown very weak. A sore throat of 
six months standing has given me much trouble. In addition 
to this I have been a sufferer from neuralgia. I think a visit 
to the Hot Springs of Arkansas would do me much good. Can 
you furnish me a special car out and back? If I go I would 
like to start sometime between the 15th and 20th of this month, 
to return soon after the beginning of the new year. 

Very truly yours, 

U. S. GRANT. 

P. S. — Mrs. Grant will accompany me, and two servants — 
maid and a man servant. 

I brought a private car to New York, and held it there for 
some time, but General Grant was not able to make the trip 
or use it 

On December 19th. 1884, I received this letter from Gen- 
eral F. D. Grant: 

No. 3 East 66th, Dec. 19th, 1884. 
Dear General : 

I will try and be at your office tomorrow morning. If I 
don't get there it will be because I will be detained with father 
at the doctor's. 

Father has been very ill, but is a little better, and we are 
trying to get him well enough to go to the matinee to see Ray- 
mond run for Congress tomorrow morning and cheer him 
(father) up a little. 

We would be glad to have you call at any time you can, 
particularly in the morning between 8 and 10 o'clock. 

Respectfully & C, 

F. D. GRANT 

In compliance with this letter, on Sunday, December 21, 
1884, I started up to see Colonel F. D. Grant. Stopped at the 



110 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

Union League Club and found the Colonel there waiting for 
me. He took me to one side and said that he had just come 
from Dr. Fordyce Parker, who told him that his father could 
not live long; perhaps a month or two, perhaps not so long. 
He said that Governor Fish and Dr. Newman were the only 
ones that knew it, and he impressed on me the necessity of 
keeping it a secret so it could not reach his father. I was 
thunderstruck, 'for only the Sunday before I was at the house, 
and the General looked fairly well, though I knew he was 
much distressed. He told me that he had been working on 
his history, and writing of my opening the middle Tennessee 
by rapid construction of the Nashville & Decatur Railroad, and 
said that while T was an excellent soldier, T was also finely 
fitted for the construction of the railroad on account of my 
education and experience as a Civil Engineer. 

After a long talk, I told Colonel Fred that General Sher- 
man was in the city, and suggested going down and telling 
the General how sick his father was, and have him come up. 
We went to the Fifth Avenue Hotel ; found the General with 
Win. McCrory, of Minneapolis, formerly on his staff, also a 
staff officer who was examining some papers. The General 
said he was in good health ; was troubled some with asthma, 
but was full of work and attending meetings, etc. Colonel 
Fred said to General Sherman : 

I think my father's history tells more of what you did than 
your own Memoirs. 

Sherman said : 

Well, when Grant writes anything, we can all depend 
on getting the facts. When he writes and says himself what 
was done and what he saw, no soldiers need fear; but when 
others write what he does and says, it is not always so. 

Colonel Fred said his father had been having considerable 
trouble with the publishers or editors of the magazine who 
were to publish the war articles — Shiloh, Vicksburg, Wilder- 



Personal Recollections of Grant. Ill 

ness and Appomattox — that they had made his father very 
angry — they wanted him to change the word "Rebel" in his 
article to "Confederate" and the word "Union" to "Feder- 
al." He said that finally the General wrote a short letter, 
demanding that his articles be published as written. Fred 
further said that his father had written three articles but he 
did not believe that he would write any more. 

Sherman said : 

This trying to soften treason by expunging the words 
of the General was wrong, and that if it kept on, pretty soon 
the sons of Southern soldiers would consider it as much of an 
honor that their fathers fought under Lee, as the sons of 
Union soldiers, that their fathers fought under Grant ; that the 
line of Union and Rebel, of loyalty and treason, should be 
kept always distinct. 

I answered : 

As long as our veterans live it will be; but the tendency 
all the time is, to wipe out history, to forget it> forgive, ex- 
cuse and soften, and when all the soldiers pass from this age 
it will be easy to slip into the idea, that one side was as good 
as the other. 

Sherman said : 

It was a conspiracy until Sumpter was fired upon ; after 
that, a Rebellion. 

Governor Woodford came in and Sherman related to him 
what Fred Grant had said but he made no response. Fred 
also said his father had written his life from boyhood to 
Donelson ; had written Shiloh, Vieksburg. Granada, Chatta- 
nooga, and the march of Sherman from Memphis to Chatta- 
nooga and the Wilderness. He said his father had omitted 
writing for four days, but asked me to come up and see him 
evenings. 

When you compare the sentiment existing then with that 
existing today, you can see what a marked change has come 
in this country. Virginia has placed, in the rotunda of the 



112 Personal Becollections of Grant. 

eapitol in Washington, a statute of General Lee in a confeder- 
ate uniform, without any protest from our country, its citizens, 
and only occasionally one from the veterans. A distinguished 
veteran in commenting upon this said that he visited the eapi- 
tol with a view of looking at Lee to see how he was dressed, 
but he said when he got there, it was a bronze statue and the 
only indication that he was a confederate came from the insig- 
nia on the Bronze, but he said he did not feel like some veter- 
ans did. He thought if Virginia was anxious to place Lee in 
the eapitol alongside of Grant, who was already there, it was 
a good object lesson for all the people who came to visit it, 
for when they looked at Lee, they would at the same time look 
at General Grant, who received Lee's surrender and saved the 
Union, and that the comparison would be favorable in every 
case to the Union. 

Right after our interview, General Sherman went up to 
see General Grant, and that evening I saw him again. He 
seemed pleased with his visit; thought General Grant was 
looking well, and as Colonel Fred Grant had requested me not 
to tell anyone the condition his father was in for fear he might 
see it, I said nothing to General Sherman. As far as I know, 
and while the fact that General Grant's disease was a fatal 
one, it was kept from him by the doctors; also by the fam- 
ily, but 1 believe Grant knew it because from that time on, 
be made great efforts to finish his Memoirs, and the fact that 
as soon as he completed his Memoirs he commenced failing 
rapidly, and within ten days was dead. That he maintained 
his strength by a determination to finish them before he died, 
the same determination he showed when on the field, and this 
letter he wrote Dr. Douglas in July, only ten days before he 
died, shows plainly he knew his end was near : 

1 ask you not to show this to anyone, unless the physicians 
you consult with, until the end. Particularly, I want it kept 
from my friends. If known to one man, the papers will get it 



Personal Rkiollkotions of Grant. 113 

It would only distress my friends, almost beyond endurance, 
to know it, and, by reflex, it would distress me. I have not 
changed my mind materially, since I wrote you before in the 
same strain. Now, however, I know that I gain strength some 
days, but when I do go back, it is beyond where I started to 
improve. I think the chances are very decidedly in favor of 
your being able to keep me alive until the change of weather, 
toward winter. Of course, there are contingencies that might 
arise at any time that would carry me off very suddenly. 

The most probable of these is choking. 

Under the circumstances, life is not worth the living. 1 
am very thankful to have been spared this long, because it has 
enabled me to practically complete the work in which I take 
so much interest. I cannot stir up strength enough to review 
it and make additions and subtractions that would suggest 
themselves to anyone else. Under the above circumstances, I 
will be the happiest, the most pain I can avoid. If there is to 
be any extraordinary cure, as some people believe there is to 
be, it will develop itself. I would say, therefore, to you and 
your colleagues, to make me as comfortable as you can. If it 
is within God's providence that I should go now, I am ready 
to obey His call without a murmur. I would prefer going now 
to enduring my present suffering for a single day. 

General Grant died at Mt. Gregor near Saratoga, New 
York, on July 23d, 1885. 1 was absent from the city, but the 
family notified me and I returned and attended the funeral. 
He was universally mourned and great crowds turned out to 
show their sympathy. He was laid in a tomb or receptacle. 
temporarily constructed for this purpose, near the present fine 
memorial building. 

There was quite a contention as to where he should be fin- 
ally laid to rest; he had desired to be buried at West Point, 
but for the fact that Mrs. Grant could not be buried there by 
his side he named Galena or New York because of the friend- 
ships shown him by that state in his greatest need. His fam- 
ily selected New York City. 

I was called upon by the Boston Journal, on his death, for 
an estimate of his character, and gave this : 

General Grant is measured from two different standpoints. 
First, as a soldier and commander: second, as a civilian and 



114 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

statesman. As a soldier General Grant was modest, retiring, 
unassuming and easy of approach, seldom if ever showing an- 
ger; standing by and supporting those in whom he trusted, or 
upon whom he had placed responsibilities, even in their fail- 
ures, if he believed that they had carried out his commands 
to the best of their ability, and with the full strength of the 
force under them. He had no use or sympathy for an officer 
who in battle or holding any position did not use, to the 
utmost limit and fight to the utmost strength, every person 
under him. With General Grant such action on the part of an 
officer covered a multitude of omissions. His strength of 
character is well illustrated by his reply when asked what lie 
claimed for the Battle of the Wilderness. 

It is well known that Confederate officers maintain the 
opinion that if this battle had been fought under any other 
commander, the results ensuing would have caused a retreat 
instead of an advance. General Grant answered, "That all he 
claimed was that after that battle the Army of the Potomac 
would never fear Lee, and that Lee's losses could never be 
replaced, and that the Union troops would have a much smaller 
force to meet in the rest of the campaign than they had en- 
countered at the beginning of the Wilderness fight." 

General Grant's fame came from the fact that he was gen- 
erally victorious, and finished successfully the Civil War, but 
the vital question is : Why did the people, with the unerring 
instinct, look to this unknown man when there were many 
others more prominent in the field, who were gaining great 
credit whilst he was under a ban, even after his first great 
victories? What led them to so firmly support him through 
all the time he was in the midst of a storm of abuse? 

My answer is that Grant was the first commander who gave 
the North to understand that he would use the force placed 
under him for all it was worth. They said: "Here at last 
is a General who will not temporize, who will not compromise, 
and who will fight at every opportunity, regardless of num- 
bers, and will attempt to capture every stronghold of the 
enemy and beat down his armies by main force." 

General Grant believed that the North had superior num- 
bers and stronger sinews of war, which, if properly used, 
would cause the victory to finally rest with him. Superiority 
of numbers and equipment would not succeed unless used with 
a determination and continued force commensurate with their 
strength. Grant saw this, saw that the nation demanded ac- 
tion, and the result was that he above all others, met this de- 
mand. The people saw it and demanded his services, no mat- 
ter what the eritics. strategists or officials said of him or his 



Personal Recollecti ons or Grant. 115 

acts, and today the world admits that his methods in war are 
the only ones to bring quick and sure results. 

It was General Grant's determination in every battle to 
use against the enemy every gun at his command, and when 
his battles are studied it is wonderful to see how he mar- 
shaled his forces. They prove that he had the genius for con- 
centrating and fighting his command upon a given point; 
therefore, it was mathematically certain that in the end he 
would win. He tied to himself with hooks of steel all those 
who served under him, from the fact that he sunk his own 
personality in his endeavors to give credit and honor to every- 
one who successfully took part in any battle under him. 

General Grant as a statesman : As the years pass by and 
his acts are measured by the results of his administration, it 
is being generally admitted that he was equally as great a 
statesman as he was a soldier. 

The Society of the Army of the Tennessee held its Re- 
union on October 8th, 1889, and took part in the dedication 
of the Grant Memorial in Lincoln Park, Chicago. Mrs. Grant 
was present, as the guest of Mrs. Potter Palmer, and the So- 
ciety was very anxious to pay their respects to Mrs. Grant, T 
called upon her at Mrs. Palmer's. She was fearful she could 
not go through the ordeal of seeing so many of General Grant's 
old comrades, many of whom she knew personally; but I as- 
sured her that the comrades would avoid anything that would 
bring to her sad memories. With the aid of Mrs. Palmer I 
prevailed upon her to receive the old army. 

At 2 o'clock that afternoon, October 8th, 1889, the officers 
arrived at the Palmer mansion. Mrs. Palmer, beautiful in a 
charming costume, received them and they were escorted into 
the great reception room to the right, where Mrs. Grant await- 
ed them. The widow was attired in black, her silvery hair 
forming a halo around the saddened features. A meet word 
of welcome was on her lips as her husband's comrades in arms 
presented themselves. 

The veterans were deeply affected. They approached her 
with reverence that was almost worship — the woman who had 
been the companion of the great General who had led them to 



U6 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

victory. Probably no General was surrounded by his officers 
with such memories of devotion as he whose bronze statue 
was unveiled yesterday, and all their love and admiration was 
given to the wife he had loved so well. Mrs. Grant was deep- 
ly affected. Many of those who bowed before her were near 
and dear friends of the long ago. They had fought by the side 
of General Grant when the fierce clamor of war had echoed 
throughout the land, and they had been bis friends and advis- 
ers when peace had come. A tide of tender memories swept 
over the soul of that silvery-haired woman as she saw the well- 
known faces and it well nigh overcame her. but she controlled 
herself remarkably well and passed through the ordeal with 
fortitude. 

The hostess, Mrs. Palmer, with rare taet. turned what 
would have been a melancholy reunion into a pleasant, enjoy- 
able social event. The veterans, true to their promise, re- 
frained from saddening allusions and the reception passed off 
most pleasantly. For an hour the officers conversed with 
their honored guest and then they departed. 

Mrs. Palmer said : 

Mrs. Grant has been deeply touched by the kindness 
shown her. 

The magnificence of the demonstration yesterday, ai the 
dedication of the monument, gratified her beyond expression. 
She feels exceedingly well today and 1 really believe that 
her little trip will be a great benefit to her physically. Of 
course, the sad memories which have come to her have af- 
fected her, but she has not been overcome. She was deeply 
touched by the kind greeting given her at the park ex- 
ercises yesterday. Mrs. Grant was sitting in such a position 
that she could not see the salutes fired from the boats upon 
the lake. She arose to change her position, and, catching sight 
of her, the vast throng greeted her most heartily. The greet- 
ing was unexpected, as Mrs. Grant had no thought of such a 
thing when she arose. The heartiness with which she has 
been received everywhere and the sacredness of her husband's 
memory to the people of Chicago have been sweet to her, and 
she will never forget this visit to our city. Her heart, she says. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. iK 



will always be warm to Chicago. I think, moreover, she will 
probably be permanently benefitted in health by her visit here. 

General T T . S. Grant died July 23, 1885. Soon after his 
death, the mayor and the leading citizens of the city of New 
York organized for the purpose of erecting a monument to 
his memory in the city of New \ r ork. They progressed suc- 
cessfully at first in this work, until something like $150,000 had 
been subscribed. They advertised for plans; many were sub- 
mitted, and that of Mr. Duncan accepted; then the matter 
halted and lay dormant until the 21st day of March, 1892, 
when General Horace Porter called together a small number 
of General Grant's friends al the Union League Club, in New 
York, and an organization was made of which General Porter 
was president, and I was vice president. 

General Porter took up the active work of raising the bal- 
ance of the sum needed to carry out the plans that had been 
presented by Mr. Duncan, and adopted by the original com- 
mittee, an estimated cost of which was about $600,000. 

General Porter spent day and night addressing the people 
of the city, until he had organized 215 committees, represent- 
ing all trade industries, etc.. which were actively at work, and 
General Porter would come in from the field about midnight 
and report to us his success in the work, and plans would 
be laid for the next day's work, and in forty days, by his 
personal efforts, there had been subscribed the needed sum. 
The work had progressed so successfully that on April 28th. 
1892, arrangements were made for the laying of the corner 
stone of the monument in the park where it now is located on 
Riverside. 

At the laying of the corner stone, the president of the 
United States with his cabinet members, Mrs. Grant and i'atn 
ily, the diplomatic corps, many distinguished officers of the 
army and navy, representatives of the G. A. R., patriotic so- 
cieties, and many citizens generally, took part. There were 
some three thousand seats reserved which were occupied by 



118 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

the guests and by members of different trades and professions 
who were taking part in raising funds for the building of the 
monument. 

General Porter presided and delivered the address, giving 
an account of the monument ; and the corner stone was laid 
by President Harrison with a "Golden Trowel." He said: 

No orator, however gifted, can over praise General Grant. 
The most costly and impressive structure that the architect can 
plan or wealth execute, is justifiable when the name of Grant 
is inscribed upon its base. This stone, which has now been 
laid, accompanied by this magnificent expression of popular 
interest, is only the top stone of a foundation. It speaks to 
us of a structure imposing and graceful in its completeness, 
which shall rise from this supporting base. 

Then the Honorable Chauncy Depew delivered an oration 
which was received with great applause. It was estimated 
that about one million people turned out to witness the 
procession, a large portion of which assembled at the location 
of the tomb. 

The Grant monument was dedicated on April 27th, 1897. 
The mayor of the city called together friends of General Grant 
and made the preliminary organization by appointing and com- 
missioning me as the Grand Marshal of the parade. President 
McKinley was to review the parade and General Horace Porter 
was to deliver the oration. The arrangements for the parade 
were the most extensive ever made in New York, and I was 
over a month attending to the details and completing the ar- 
rangements. 

I had a very efficient staff, consisting of Colonel II. C. Cor- 
bin, General T. P. Rodenbough, A. Noel Blakeman, Captain 
•John A. Johnson, Lieut. Wm. E. Horton, and Colonel William 
C. Sanger as the working force, and Captain Chester of the 
United States navy who was in charge of the naval parade for 
me, and 200 volunteer aides. The parade marched from Madi- 
son Square to the tomb, about four miles, and was in three 
grand divisions. 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 119 

The first division — the regular army, the militia and ma- 
rines. The second — the Grand Army and the Patriotic Or- 
ganizations and societies. The third — the Civic Division. Of 
the regular army, militia and cadets, there were sixty thou- 
sand in line. Of the Grand Army and patriotic societies, about 
twenty-five thousand, and of the Civic Procession about twen- 
ty-five thousand — the largest parade ever seen in New York, 
and it was from 1 :30 to 6 :30 P. M., closed in solid column, 
passing the review stand. 

The day was a cold, windy, uncomfortable day, but the 
police estimated that over three million of people lined the 
sidewalks, and whilst there were bleechers along the road to 
accommodate fifty thousand people, it was so cold and windy 
that many of them were deserted, people lining up on the 
sidewalks, and the handling of the crowd by the police was 
simply perfect. 

The guests, many of the noted people of the United States, 
including the President and Cabinet, General Grant's family, 
diplomatic representatives of every nation, Congress and Exe- 
cutive officers and their representatives of every state, occu- 
pied seats around the reviewing stand. The naval parade in- 
cluded many of the United States ships, and a representation 
of naval ships from nearly every country. At the reviewing 
stand there were seats for five thousand people. The naval 
parade lined up along the Hudson River, from the tomb clear 
down to the Battery. The dean of the diplomats, Lord Paunce- 
fote, wrote me a letter complimenting me as to the perfection 
of the arrangements and the ability with which the large mass 
was handled. I also received from foreign countries requests 
for my orders. 

I arranged the formation of the parade so that the troops 
should not stand on the side streets more than half an hour 
before they fell into line. I ascertained the time that each 
command would take its place in the column by marching a 
company of troops from Governor's Island, from the Madison 



120 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

Square to the monument and past to the dismissal of the pa- 
rade, taking the time they passed each street, the time for 
resting, and in this way, knowing the number of troops in 
each command, was enabled to place the troops and veterans, 
the civic organizations, so that no one had to wait over half 
an hour. The last formation fell into line about 4:30 o'clock. 

The address of the President of the United States was a 
very fine one; but the oration of General Horace Porter was a 
remarkable one, one of the finest probably ever delivered in 
this country, and there was no person better equipped, per- 
haps, than General Horace Porter, to tell the multitude of 
General Grant and what he had accomplished. His closing 
words in the dedication of the Grant tomb. April 27, 1897. 
were : 

Most of the conspicuous characters in history have risen 
to prominence by gradual steps, but the senior of the Trium- 
virate, whose features are recalled to us today, came before 
the people with a sudden bound. Almost the first sight caught 
of him was in the blaze of his camp-fires and the flashes of his 
guns those wintry days and nights in front of Donelson. Prom 
that time until the closing triumph at Appomattox the great 
central figure of the war was Ulysses S. Grant. As light and 
shade produce the most attractive effects in a picture, the 
singular contrasts, the strange vicissitudes of his eventful life 
surround him with an interest which attaches to few characters 
in history. His rise from an obscure Lieutenant to the com- 
mand of the veteran armies of the great Republic ; his transi- 
tion from a frontier post of the untrodden West to the Execu- 
tive Mansion of the nation; his sitting at one time in a little 
store in Galena, not even known to the Cogressman from his 
district; at another time striding through the palaces of the 
old world, with the descendants of a line of kings rising and 
standing with uncovered heads in his presence. These are 
some of the features of his marvelous career which appeal to 
the imagination, excite men 's wonder and fascinate all who 
make a study of his life. 

He was created for great emergencies. It was the very 
magnitude of the task which called forth the powers which 
mastered it. In ordinary matters he was an ordinary man ; in 
momentous affairs he towered as a giant. When performing 
the routine duties of a company post there was no act to make 



Personal .Recollections of Grant. 121 

him conspicuous above his fellow officers, but when he wielded 
Corps and Armies the great qualities of the Commander flashed 
forth, and his master strokes of genius stamped him as the 
foremost soldier of his age. When he hauled wood from his 
little farm and sold it in St. Louis his financiering was hardly 
equal to that of the small farmers about him, but when a mes- 
sage was to be sent by a President to Congress that would 
puncture the fallacies of the inflationists and throttle, by a 
veto, the attempt of unwise legislators to cripple the finances 
of the Nation, a State paper was produced which has ever since 
commanded the wonder and admiration of every believer in 
sound currency. He was made for great things, not for little 
things. He could collect fifteen millions from Great Britain in 
settlement of the Alabama claims ; he could not protect his 
own personal savings from the miscreants who robbed him in 
Wall street. 

If there is one word which describes better than any 
other the predominating characteristic of his nature, that 
word is loyalty. He was loyal to his friends, loyal to his fam- 
ily, loyal to his country, and loyal to his God. This trait nat- 
urally produced a reciprocal effect upon those who were 
brought into relations with him and was one of the chief rea- 
sons why men became so loyally attached to him. Many a 
public man has had troops of adherents who clung to him only 
for the patronage dispensed at his hands, or being dazzled by 
his power, became blind partisans to a cause he represented, 
but perhaps no other man than General Grant ever had so 
many friends who loved him for his own sake, whose affec- 
tion only strengthened with time, whose attachment never 
varied in its devotion, whether he was General or President, or 
simply a private citizen. 

Even the valor of his martial deeds was surpassed by the 
superb heroism he displayed when fell disease attacked him ; 
when the hand which had seized the surrendered SAvords of 
countless thousands was no longer able to return the pres- 
sure of a comrade's grasp, when he met in death the first 
enemy to whom he ever surrendered. But with him death 
brought eternal rest, and he was permitted to enjoy what he 
had pleaded for in behalf of others — for the Lord had let him 
have peace. 

Whilst we were constructing the Grant memorial in New 
York City, our contract provided, to comply with the wishes 
of General Grant, that arrangements should be made in the 
crypt for two sarcophaguses, lying side by side, one for the use 



132 Personal Recollections of Grant. 

of General Grant, and the other for Mrs. Grant. For some rea- 
son only the one sarcophagus was at first provided, which 
worried Mrs. Grant very much, and she wrote me in relation 
To it and often spoke to me about it ; but I assured her the de- 
lay was simply the inability of the contractors to get a sarco- 
phagus of the same material exactly as that of General Grant's. 

When I wrote her that we had obtained the material and 
had placed a sarcophagus in the tomb alongside of General 
Grant's, she wrote me a letter telling me how greatly it had 
relieved her anxiety. She said to me that when General Grant 
and herself were in Europe they paid a visit to the tomb of 
Ferdinand and Isabella, both lying side by side in the tomb. 
The thought of the royal couple sleeping side by side for cen- 
turies- appealed to General Grant, and turning to her, he said : 
"Julia, this is the way we should be in death." 

General Grant, no doubt, had this in mind, when in a mem- 
orandum he stated that he preferred West Point as his burial 
place, but for the fact that his wife could not be placed be- 
side him, named Galena or New York. 

On December 14th, 1902, Mrs. Grant died in Washington. 
1 happened to be in the city and immediately went to the 
house and found Mrs. Sartoris, her daughter, the only one of 
the family present, General F. D. Grant and family being on 
duty in Ft. Houston, Texas, and the other two sons, Ulysses 
S. and Jessie, and their families, living on the Pacific Coast. 
And at Mrs. Sartoris' request I immediately took charge of all 
the arrangements for burial, communicating immediately with 
General Frederick D. Grant at Ft. Houston, who also asked 
me to take charge. 

General Frederick D. Grant and family soon returned and 
the War Department came promptly to our aid and made pro- 
vision for taking the families and funeral cortege to New York. 
After the ceremonies in Washington, we took the remains to 
New York whero thp Grant Memorial Association took charge 



Personal Eecollections of Grant. 133 

of theni, and made all the arrangements for placing her in the 
stone receptacle, alongside of her husband, where she had 
been so anxious to lie. 

She was a devoted wife, Julia Dent Grant. After every 
campaign she visited General Grant, and was welcomed by 
everyone in his command. She had a kindly, gracious way 
that captured us. The officers who had annoyances and griev- 
ances they could not take to the General and his staff, ap- 
pealed to Mrs. Grant. She was very diplomatic and knew 
which to consider, and which she could not take up with the 
General, and many an officer could thank her for interceding 
and straightening out his grievance. We went to her with 
great confidence in what she could do. Although she always 
asserted that she had no influence in army matters, I noticed 
tione of us was ever concerned about or censured for our ap- 
peals to Mrs. Grant, and there was no soldier who did not love 
to see her with the tinny, and who did not regret her depart- 
ure. During General Grant's administrations, his troubles and 
his sickness, she was always the same. She straightened out 
many little contentions, and a suggestion to the General often 
pointed the way to settle many little annoyances. After Gen- 
eral Grant's death I saw much of her, and was charmed with 
the great number of incidents she had stored away, and her 
Kreat memory for what happened. At our army reunions we 
always had & word from her, and sent her our greetings, and 
they were happy mile-stones in her life. Many happy hours I 
have spent with her, as she recalled the many events in the 
General's life, and any of his comrades received a hearty wel- 
come from her. The Nation will never know how much it is in- 
debted to her loyal devotion and good advice, and it is a singu- 
lar fact that in his own home General Grant was uneasy and 
discontented when Mrs. Grant was away. He was devoted and 
loyal to her, and his last request that she be laid at his side, no 
matter where they placed him, was worthy of the great man, as 
well as due to his devoted helpmate. The hold she had, not 



\M Personal Recollections oe Grant. 

only on her country but on all others, was shown by the uni- 
versal response at her death and the great respect shown her 
as we laid her beside the General at Eiverside. 

My relations with General Grant during the war were of 
the greatest interest, and his marked frindship for me on 
many occasions, his recommendations for promotion to higher 
command, were of untold benefit, for 1 was a young officer, 
holding commands all the time I served under General Grant 
that I was not entitled to by my rank, but was held in them 
until promotion came to me. 

After the war my residence and occupation brought me 
often with General Granl and his family, and 1 Avas often a 
visitor to his home. When his son, Frederick Dent Grant, 
graduated from West Point, General Grant, I think, had an 
idea of having him go into business rather than into the army: 
and he sent him out to me to have him placed in an engineer- 
ing corps, and I gave him a position in one of the corps that 
was making surveys in Colorado while we were building the 
Union Pacific Railroad. 

When he joined the party he made himself one of them — 
acceptable to them, assuming nothing on his relations or his 
rank as a Lieutenant in the Army, and performed his duty the 
same as all the others, and won the respect and love of the 
party, lie remained with the party until he went with Gen- 
eral Sherman on his trip abroad. 

After General Grant's death, the friendship of Mrs. Grant 
and family grew T into a family affection, and at a meeting of 
the Society of the Army of the Tennessee of my Regiment, the 
Fourth Iowa, and the Dodge Battery, at my home in Council 
Bluffs, Iowa, October 11th, 1911, Major-General Frederick 
Dent Grant paid me this fine tribute : 

General Dodge, Ladies and Gentlemen, Veterans of the Fourth 

Iowa Regiment and of the Dodge Battery : 

I am grateful to be with you here, and I feel deeply hon- 
ored in receiving your kind welcome to the son of one who 
was your friend and comrade — General U. S. Grant. 











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MAJOR- GENKRAL FREDERICK D. GRANT 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 1^5 

No distance, no duties — nothing — could prevent my coming 
to Council Bluffs to meet you on this occasion and to greet 
your former Colonel, Iowa's distinguished citizen, General 
Grenville M. Dodge, for whom my father and my father's son 
have cherished always a heartfelt admiration and friendship. 
I wish to add my tribute of praise and thanks to him 
whose work and deeds have been an honor to his country. 
Fortunately for me, I was with my father much of the time 
during those dark days of the Civil War, and through that ter- 
rible struggle for the Union, I, as a boy, witnessed that untir- 
ing devotion to duty, loyalty and unflinching courage of those 
noble, great men whose names must shine forever upon the 
rolls of honor in the archives of our Nation. I am thankful 
to have seen and known those heroes. I rejoice in having dis- 
tinct, personal recollections of those distinguished Americans 
who, putting aside all selfish or personal interests, when their 
country was in need, when the Northern people were discour- 
aged, hastened with grim determination to sacrifice their all, 
their lives if necessary, for the restoration of peace in our 
land. 

It is to those heroes of our northern armies, to Geueral 
Dodge, to you veterans here, and to those others, your com- 
rades gone before, that we owe this great, beautiful country, 
with North and South united, resting in that peace and har- 
mony in which this present generation so triumphs. 

I have known and heard always of your loyal heroism and 
that of your Colonel, but I wish to speak a word now, not only 
of heroes but of a friend for whom I have cherished always the 
warmest admiration and affection, inherited from father and 
ever increasing throughout my long association with him. T 
refer to your much loved citizen, General Dodge. 

I yield to no one, not to you, his veteran comrades; not 
to your State of Iowa, nor to his own family and nearest 
friends, as possessing a warmer or deeper feeling of devotion 
than my own for General Dodge. In this affection my son, 
TTlysses S. Grant, III, and all my family join me. 

It was to General Dodge I confided my distress and grief 
in first learning that my dear father was stricken with a fatal 
illness and his days were numbered. When I learned also of 
that other great sorrow which came to our family in the pass- 
ing away of my mother, I again turned to General Dodge for 
sympathy and found him as always, ready to extend heartfelt 
friendship and condolence. 

Like all brave and truly great men, he has a warm and 
tender heart upon which his friends may rely always with eon 
fidence 



126 Personal .Recollections of Grant. 

The happy gathering of veterans recalls to mind vividly 
the great victories and that national glory won by the Union 
forces during the Civil War — those heroes of the Army who 
in that fearful strife, by their sacrifices and valor, secured 
for us in reality and in fact, what our ancestors had organ- 
ized in theory — namely, a land of Liberty and United Nation. 

Let us never forget that to you heroes of the Union 
armies we owe all this in which we now triumph. 

My happiest hours are those passed with you, General 
Dodge, and the other comrades of my father. This associa 
tion, with my name, is my proudest heritage . 

I am very grateful to be with you here, and thank you 
again for your kindness. 

On April 12, 1912, another great sorrow came to General 
Grant's family in the sudden death of Major-General Frederick 
Dent Grant of the United States Army, he being about the age 
of his father at the time of his death. Pie stood very high in 
the records of the "War Department. When President McKinley 
made him a Brigadier-General in the regular army, he said to 
me: "He needs no outside influence or recommendations; his 
record in the War Department entitles him to this promotion.'' 
He was universally liked by the army and by all those who 
knew him. 

He had many of his father's characteristics, much more 
than any other member of the family, and it was generally 
conceded that, in case of war, he would develop many of the 
qualities as a General that made his father famous. 

To the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, his death 
was a great loss. He took a great interest in his father's 
comrades, and by his modest and winning ways, won their 
affections and made himself universally liked and respected by 
them. He and his family always attended the Reunions. 

His son, Captain Ulysses S. Grant, III, is bravely doing his 
duty in command of the United States Engineers at Vera Cruz, 
Mexico, where his grandfather won so much credit as a Lieu- 
tenant in the Mexican war of 1846-47. 

General Grant, in discussing the criticisms upon himself, 
said : 



Personal Recollections of Grant. 12? 

Twenty years after the close of the most stupendous war 
ever known, we have writers who profess devotion to the na- 
tion, trying to prove that the nation's forces were not victor- 
ious. Probably they say we were slashed around from Donel- 
son to Vicksburg and Chattanooga, and in the East, Gettys- 
burg to Appomattox, when the physical rebellion gave out 
from sheer exhaustion. I would like to see truthful history 
written, and history will do credit to the courage, endurance 
and soldierly ability of the American citizen, no matter what 
section of the country he hailed from, or in what ranks he 
fought. 

Speaking of those who opposed our country during the 
war, Grant gave this opinion : 

The man who obstructs a war in which his nation is en- 
gaged, no matter whether right or wrong, occupies no enviable 
place in life or history. The most charitable post-humorous 
history the stay-at-home traitor can hope for is oblivion. 

The facts are, that thirty years ago General Grant laid 
down the policies that the country maintains today on all great 
questions — -the maintenance of the Monroe Doctrine, the settle- 
ment of all disputes by arbitration, the currency, gold stand- 
ards, the upbuilding of the navy, the policy in the West Indies, 
acquisition of foreign territory, retirement of green-backs 
until paid out for gold, and the education of our people, upon 
which subject nothing more clear than his speech at Des 
Moines, Iowa, has ever been uttered. It has always been an 
enigma to me to hear people speak of General Grant, and say : 
"He was a great soldier but a failure in civil life," for his 
standing throughout the world is as high or higher for his acts 
as a civilian as for the great victories of the Civil War. Grant 
as a statesman was the same as he was when a soldier. When 
we were living in camp and not on a campaign, he was indo- 
lent. It was hard to get a reply to a letter or dispatch, or get 
any comfort from him, but the moment he got on his horse to 
lead a campaign it seemed as though he anticipated all events 
His judgment seemed infallible, his decision was made in- 



128 PERSONAL ReOOLLECTIONB OF GRANT. 

stantly, and the answer to a dispatch or letter was ready the 
moment he read it. He never hesitated; he never was am- 
biguous. Any person receiving a letter did not have to ask a 
second explanation, and he greatly objected to receiving dis- 
patches expressing doubts during a campaign. He said to me 
that he never doubted what I could or would do from my dis- 
patches, and seldom if ever made a suggestion upon them. 
When I read them myself now I am absolutely astonished at 
the positive character of them, and their bluntness. To the 
subordinates he trusted he gave great latitude and seemed to 
have the utmost confidence in their success. His orders to 
them told what he wanted them to do, leaving to them all de- 
tails, invariably saying if they needed help he would sup- 
port them. He tied every officer and soldier to him with bands 
of steel, for he invariably gave everyone credit for what they 
accomplished, sinking himself. If they failed and he consid 
ered they had done the best possible, he shielded them, and as- 
sumed the responsibility of the failure. 

After the war it was my good fortune to be thrown with 
General Grant a good deal, and I was associated with him in 
some of his enterprises, such as the railway from the City of 
Mexico to the Pacific Ocean, and it was impossible for me to 
meet him as I did and not comprehend that he was in civil 
life, as in military life, of that peculiar make-up which let 
small matters go without attention, but in any crisis would 
rise to command it. He was so modest and so simple that his 
greatness was absolutely forced upon one from his very acts. 
Nevertheless, so far no critic in this nation, or any other, has 
ever been able to write a word against his military course or 
civil life which carried strength enough to be mentioned the 
second time. General Grant's greatness was admitted long be- 
fore he left our shores, and although a simple citizen, he was 
honored as no one ever was before, and his simplicity simply 
astonished the world. Some critics of General Grant have 



Personal Recollections ok Grant. 129 

said that during the war he absorbed from others many of his 
great qualities as ;i soldier, but no one can read the war rec- 
ords without seeing that the strength of his dispatches and 
orders, the boldness of his plans, his fearless attack of super- 
ior numbers, and his decisive victories in the early part of the 
war were equal to if not superior to those of the last year of 
the war. 

The great distinguishing qualities of General Grant were 
truth, courage, modesty, generosity and loyalty. He was loyal 
to every work and every cause in which he was engaged — to 
his friends, his family, his country and to his God, and it was 
these characteristics which bound to him with hooks of steel 
all those who served with him. He absolutely sunk himself to 
give to others honor and praise to which he, himself, was 
entitled. No officer served under him who did not understand 
this. I was a young man and given much larger commands 
than my rank entitled me to. General Grant never failed to 
encourage me by giving me credit for whatever I did, or tried 
to do. If I failed he assumed the responsibility ; if I succeeded 
he recommended me for promotion. He always looked at the 
intention of those who served under him, as well as to their 
acts. If they failed in intention, he dropped them so quickly 
and efficiently that the whole country could see and hear their 
fall. 




MAJOR-GENERAL, W. T. SHERMAN, 1S64 



PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
GENERAL W. T. SHERMAN 



As a soldier of the Union, General Sherman, by common 
consent, stands second only in a galaxy of great commanders 
such as no single cycle in the annals of time can parallel. This 
is the verdict of the most superficial reader and of the most 
diligent student of history. 

A reference to the official list of battles, skirmishes, and 
other contests from April 15th, 1861, to the close of the war, 
develops the astounding fact that for every day, including 
Sundays, of those four years there were at least three of these 
struggles. If in such a death grapple General Sherman rose 
to the highest rank and command aiming - the victors, it can- 
not but be interesting to turn back to the circumstances of 
his parentage and scan the surroundings of his youth to find, 
if we can, the formative influences which moulded the plastic 
tendencies of his nature into the lofty and harmonious indi- 
viduality which marked him out for eminent leadership. 

Both his father and grandfather had been learned in the 
law. His father not only mastered the intricacies of Coke 
and Littleton, but made himself familiar with whatever was 
worthy reading outside of the books of the law, and was there- 
fore fitted to shine in the domain of general literature, as well 
as in the realm of technical jurisprudence. It was this gifted 
man who, when his third son was born, proposed to bestow 
upon him the name of a celebrated chieftain — as if seeing the 
child's future military career. Judge Sherman entertained a 
warm admiration for the celebrated Indian chief, Tecumseh, 
and this singular Indian was gifted with rare endowments, 
which gave him great prominence amongst his tribal allies, and 



132 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

a commanding influence over his followers of the forest. Na- 
ture had made him a soldier, and he was a statesman by intui- 
tion. Farseeing in plan, wary to win, sagacious to combine, 
and inflexible to execute, these qualities made him a formid- 
able leader and also a dangerous opponent. He was not habit- 
ually ruthless or cruel in his warfare ; on the contrary, many 
acts of mercy, of generous chivalric protection, are recorded 
of him that would grace the annals of the knight errantry of 
old. It was the name of this renowned Indian that Judge 
Sherman bestowed upon the new-born son. Shortly after, at a 
social gathering in his house, Judge Sherman was remon- 
strated with, half in play and half in earnest, for perpetuating 
in his family the savage Indian mime. He only replied, but 
it was with seriousness, "Tecumseh was a great warrior," and 
the affair of the name was settled, never to be changed, even 
as in the case of General Grant by dictum of West Point ami 
the War Department. 

A single apt remark will sometimes reveal to the experi- 
enced and observant, a clearer view than will be produced by 
long and labored description. Such a remark General Sher- 
man once made to a lady, and the story was narrated by her to 
a party of friends, since the General's death. She was, many 
years ago, visiting her intimate friends, the family of Judge 
Wright, in Washington, where she frequently met General 
Sherman and his brother, the distinguished Senator. The 
Wrights and the Shermans, as she learned, had been next- 
door neighbors in childhood, and in their childhood days both 
families were large. On one occasion the General, in his ani- 
mated way, was describing to this young lady how the two 
families of children had been accustomed to constantly play 
with each other, there being a private gateway giving com- 
munication between the two houses. At this point the young 
lady remarked that she 'wondered that they had not some- 
times got mixed up when bedtime came." 



Personal Kecollections or Sherman. 133 



"Oh," said the General, laughingly, in his quick, impulsive 

way, "we were mixed up all the time; there was a nightly 
swapping of bed-fellows, and neither mother could be always 
sure whether her boys were sleeping at home or at her neigh- 
bors." 

At another time the Genera] confided to her the interesting 
fact that he used to enjoy stealing Dominie Wright's Sunday 
stock of kindling wood, late on Saturday evening, on account 
of the supposed embarrassment that would result to the pious 
preacher on the morrow — thus giving away the secret that he 
had been subject to some of the weaknesses of the average 
boy. 

Professor Howe was for many years an educator of con- 
siderable local reputation in an Iowa town. During, and sub- 
sequent to, the war he was in the habit of telling on all fitting 
occasions, with great pride, of his having been in former years 
the instructor of the Sherman children, in Lancaster, Ohio. 
They were, according lo his stoary, very promising and very 
interesting pupils, on the whole, but very obstreperous on 
some occasions, before he finally succeeded in getting them 
under control. To get to this control he found it necessary 
to give the brothers a sound thrashing. They resisted ; the 
battle was fierce and protracted, hut the pedagogue came out 
the conqueror, though himself in a sadly dilapidated condition. 

After Sherman became General of the Army, a gentleman, 
who had heard this story, happened to be traveling with Gen- 
eral Sherman up the Hudson river to West Point. During 
the conversation with the General it occurred to him to ask 
the question: "General, did you ever attend the school of a 
certain Professor Howe?" "Sam Howe?" was the response. 
"Why yes, he used to lick John and me like hell." 

This was regarded as confirmation of the truth of the afore- 
said story. When Professor Howe died at an advanced age. 
a few years ago, one of his children mailed a eopy of his 



134 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

obituary to General Sherman, which elicited this characteristic 

response : 

Headquarters, U. S. Army, 

Washington, D. C, April 26, 1877. 
Warrington Howe, Esq. : 

Dear Friend — I have received your letter, with the news- 
paper slip containing the full and just tribute to your father, 
the late Samuel L. Howe. T regret extremely that in my pre- 
ambulations over this great country of late years I never had 
the chance to meet your father, which I wanted to do. And 
now, though forty long, eventful years have passed since I 
left his school at Lancaster, Ohio, I can recall his personal ap- 
pearance to mind as clearly as though it were yesterday. I 
have always borne willing testimony to his skill and merits as 
a teacher, and am sure that the thorough modes of instruction 
pursued by him prepared me for easy admission to West Point, 
and for a respectable standing in my class. I have heard 
from time to time of the changes that attended his useful ca- 
reer, and am glad to learn that he left behind the flourishing 
academy at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, with children qualified to take 
up his work where he left off, and carry it to completion. 

I beg you will convey to your mother the assurance of 
my great respect and sympathy in her affliction. T recall her 
also to memory, a young mother, living in the house of "Pap" 
Boyle, close by the school house built by Mr. Howe in the old 
orchard, and it is hard for me to realize that she is now a 
widow and a grandmother. I feel sure, however, that Mr. 
Howe left behind him hundreds and thousands that revere 
his memory, and will perpetuate it by deeds and virtues which 
his example and precepts suggested. 

Truly, your friend, 

W. T. SHERMAN, 

1 have thus dwelt upou the youth and parentage of Gen- 
eral Sherman, because in addition to the interest which nat 
urally attached to that part of this great man's life, but little 
attention has been hitherto given to it, even in his own incom- 
parable Memoirs. 

My first knowledge of General Sherman was when I was 
in command of the Central Division of the Mississippi, with 
headquarters at Trenton, Tenn. Later my spies brought me 
information that I thought of importance to the command at 
Memphis, and General Sherman acknowledged the information 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 135 

with a letter, thanking me and proposing that whatever 
information of the enemy either of us obtained that related to 
our commands, we should note it and communicate it. The 
letter was such a remarkable and friendly one that it greatly 
impressed me. 

The first time I came into personal contact with General 
Sherman was in September, 1863. I was lying very ill at 
Corinth ; and was Commander of that District. General Grant 
had ordered Sherman -west from Memphis, to rebuild the road 
through to Decatur, with a view of aiding Rosecrans in his 
campaign against Bragg, or at any rate to make a demon- 
stration upon Bragg 's communications. General Sherman 
brought with him an open letter from General Grant to me. 
He came in and sat down by my bedside and read the letter, 
which was very complimentary to me and my command. The 
substance of the letter was that when General Sherman reached 
my command I was to take from it whatever troops could be 
spared, and accompany him in his movement to the East. 

After Sherman read the letter from Grant, he said: "Now 
are you well enough to do what General Grant suggested?" 
I said "Yes." He said, "All right, I will give you plenty 
of time, and you can bring up the rear, and I will issue the 
orders." 

Sherman was then Commander of the Fifteenth Army 
Corps, that was crossing the country from Memphis to De- 
catur. Soon after his visit to me, I sent him the substance of 
reports of my spies and scouts working in my front and inside 
the enemy's lines, and in answer, I received the following let- 
ter from him, which will show you his method of treating a 
subordinate who was to command one of his units: 

Headquarters, Fifteenth Army Corps, 

„ ' = _ , _ . ;. October 22d, 1863. 

General G. M. Dodge, Corinth. 

Dear General :— I thank you for the budget of news, which 

is most serviceable, as we can approximate the truth. Of 



136 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

course here I am halted by Bear Creek, which is a worse place 
than was represented to me. 

I have my three leading Divisions across Bear Creek, and 
all hands busy at the bridge and trestles. We have lost eight 
killed and about thirty-five wounded, in all. Among the dead 
is Colonel Torrence, Thirtieth Iowa. I think it is well estab- 
lished that Lee, who came from Jackson, Clinton and Canton, 
with about 4,000 good cavalry, is to my front with Kody's 
Brigade; and I think also that Wheeler's cavalry has been 
driven out of Tennessee, and it is now resting between here 
and Decatur. 

If all of this Cavalry turns on me, I will have a nice time, 
but can't help it. And if Porter gets me up some boats to 
Eastport I will checkmate them. The Tennessee is in very fair 
boating order for four feet, and I expect daily a boat up from 
Cairo, also a ferry boat. I have had the river examined well 
and am more than satisfied we cannot ford, even on the shoals. 

Of course I don't believe the report you sent of the cap- 
ture of Banks and fifteen regiments. Dick Taylor was some- 
where west of the river, between Alexander and Shreveport. 
That ground is familiar to me, and I know Dick Taylor can- 
not get to the east side of the Mississippi with anything like 
an army. After the capture of Vicksburg we relaxed our ef- 
forts and subsided. The rascals display an energy worthy a 
better cause, but as it is, when they e.ome to the finish 
they don't fight equal to their numbers. ( Mialnter's dispatch 
is a sample. He captured the camp of the 7th Illinois, off on 
Hatch's expedition, and nothing else of moment. But he may 
again attempt the road, yet Ilurlbut has plenty to checkmate 
him if he don't attempt to follow, but anticipates and inter- 
poses the railroad and Tallahatchee. 

I propose to finish the bridge and move on Tnseumbia, hut 
in the end may actually cross to Eastport. My orders are 
fully comprehended in their drawing from Roseerans the eav 
airy that has heretofore bothered him. 

I had a regiment at Eastport. A party crossed over who 
saw no one, but here the river was patrolled so as to report 
all movements. I will fortify this place somewhat, so that if 
the enemy's cavalry attempt to operate against it they will 
catch more than they bargain for. Corinth is too formidable 
a place for them to dream of an attack, but you should keep 
a couple of regiments disposable to take the offensive. 

I am obliged to you for all information, and will impart all 
positive information to you. Keep me well advised from day 
to day of Fuller's approach. I have one Brigade at Burnsville. 
and three Divisions in front of Bear Creek. Yours, 

W. T. SHERMAN. MYi.jor-General. 



Personal Recollections of S herman. 137 

It was about October 24th, 1863, that Sherman was given 
command of the Army of the Tennessee, and it was the next 
day T received this order : 

Headquarters Dept., of the Tennessee. 

n , ,, , « . ., October 25th, 1863. 

General Dodge, Cormth : 

I wish you to prepare to make up the best possible Division 
of troops, to be taken from those now in your own Division and 
such others as on railroad guard duty, not belonging to any of 
the organized Brigades of Hurlbut's Corps. You to command 
it and to accompany the movement up the Valley of the Tennes- 
see. Our object is to secure absolute footing up the Valley 
of the Tennessee and the river, giving us a certain supply to 
Eastport now, and Florence very soon. We can risk the rail- 
road, or nse it as long as we can. Is your health equal to it? 
Tome up and see me on the subject. Yours, 

W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General . 

1 got on a locomotive, taking a doctor with me, and visited 
Sherman. On the 27th of October, while I was in consultation 
with him, Sherman received Grant's dispatch to drop all rail- 
way repairs east of Iuka and move as rapidly as possible to 
Chattanooga. The plans were then formed for crossing the 
Tennessee, and I was able from my knowledge of the country 
to aid him in putting his army across. 

The history of that rapid march to Chattanooga is well 
known. I do not propose to go into it in detail. I drew from 
my commands troops for two- Divisions, and Sherman organ- 
ized them immediately into a Corps command. As we marched 
along he was in the habit of writing back personal letters to 
each of us who commanded a unit, and telling us where he 
thought we would find the best means of feeding our com- 
mands, because we were living off the country, only trans- 
porting sugar, coffee, bacon and ammunition. 

When he got into the Elk River country with the Fifteenth 
Army Corps, he wrote me back a note saying: 

The Fifteenth Army Corps has cleaned up everything as 
they went along: you had better not follow them: T do not 



138 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

think you will find a chicken in their trail, and my advice is 
to push further north, say towards Pulaski or Columbia, and 
let me know what route you take. 

I changed the direction of my column towards Columbia, 
as lie had suggested, and reported my movements. 

While on this inarch I received the following letter: 

Headquarters, Army of the Tennessee. 

Bridgeport, Nov. 18th, 1863. 
Dear General : 

Your letter, enclosing copy of your order is received. 1 
heartily approve your order, and think it right to make citi- 
zens earn good treatment. They can suppress guerillas— 1 
know it, and on my threat at Florence they brought in a man 
captured by guerrillas at Cravelly Springs. Keep your in- 
fantry so that you can concentrate, and let your cavalry watch 
<vell down to the mouth of the Elk on both sides. Don't let 
the enemy draw any supplies from north of the Tennessee. 

I have been up to Chattanooga. Their poor mules and 
horses tell the tale of horrid roads and no forage. I hate to 
put ours up in that mountain gorge. The two Divisions have 
gone forward and two more follow tomorrow. I go to Chat- 
tanooga tomorrow, and think many days cannot elapse be- 
fore we bring on a fight. It is intended to act quick, as Long- 
street has gone up to East Tennessee. 

General Grant says that everything has been done to push 
the work on the Nashville & Decatur road, but work on the 
railroad moves slow. Write me fully and frequently, and 
send me all the statistical information that I may stow it away 
for the future. Yonr sketch of your route shows Pulaski a 
good place from which to operate. I will try and get some 
more cavalry from the North. 

I was greatly disappointed on receiving this letter, and a 
letter which he enclosed me from General Grant, telling me to 
rebuild the railroads in Central Tennessee. I answered Gen- 
ral Sherman from Pulaski on the 23d. The first sentence of 
my letter let him know how disappointed I was; it was as fol- 
lows : 

I am in receipt of your letter of Nov. 18th, written at 
Bridgeport, and if a fight comes off at Chattanooga and we 
are not in it, we will be sadly disappointed, but take it for 
granted it is for the best, 



Personal Recollections of Sherman . 139 

After the Battle of Chattanooga, I received the following 
message : 

We are all right. We defeated Bragg on Missionary Ridge 
and our troops are pursuing. I start at once for the head of 
my column. Keep your troops well in hand, and I hope soon 
to come to you, and we will then make it all right south and 
west of Decatur. 

After the Chattanooga campaign Sherman inarched to 
Knoxville. As soon as Longstreet knew he was en route, he 
left. He suggested to Burnsides that they should go after 
Longstreet and drive him out of Tennessee ; but Burnsides an- 
swered that he could take care of Longstreet, and Sherman 
brought back the Army of the Tennessee and scattered it 
from Columbia along the line of the Nashville & Decatur 
road, and from Athens to Bridgeport along the line of the 
Memphis & Charleston road, with directions to fit up our 
command ready for a spring campaign; remount our cavalry, 
replenish our teams ; in fact gave us carte blanche to do 
everything necessary to put our commands in good condition 
for the campaign Grant had in view. 

On December 23d, 1863, General Grant called the Corps 
and Army Commanders of the Army of the Tennessee to Nash- 
ville to inform' them of his plans for a winter campaign, and 
there met Generals Sherman, Rawlins and Dodge of the Army 
of the Tennessee, and General Granger of the Army of the 
Cumberland, commanding the District of Nashville. On our 
arrival General Grant took us to call upon Andrew Johnson, 
the Military Governor of Tennessee. We found him in a fine 
new residence. General Grant excused our appearance by 
saying we had not had time to change our clothes, and after a 
short conversation, Governor Johnson opened up with a great 
tirade against the rebels and how he would treat them. He 
brought his fist down on the piano with such force that one 
could have heard it sound all over the house, and declared: 
"No rebel need hope for mercy from me." We left, all of 



140 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

us rather disgusted, as his tirade was uncalled for, and while 
I was in command of Middle Tennessee I hardly ever put my 
hand on a rebel, taking his stock or forage, but Johnson tried 
to stop it and protect him. 

After our return to headquarters, Sherman's first sugges- 
tion was that we should go to the theater. We were all dressed 
in our rough, campaigning clothes, in fact we had nothing else 
with us, as we had not been able to get any supplies since we 
left the Mississippi River. That night we went to the theater, 
paid our way in, and obtained seats in the front row in the 
balcony. The play of "Hamlet" was upon the boards. You 
all know what a fine Shakespearean critic Sherman was. The 
play was simply being butchered— to the great amusement of 
a theater full of soldiers, who were either coming from leave 
of absence or going upon one. No one in the audience seemed 
to recognize us, and we sat there quite a while. Sherman, who 
was sitting next to me, talked so loudly about, the play that 
everybody could hear him. He said: "Dodge, that is no way 
to play Hamlet!" and he went on so excitedly that I said to 
him two or three times, "General, don't talk so loud, some of 
the boys will discover us, and there will be a scene." But 
he was so indignant at the butchery of the play that he could 
not keep still. During the grave-digger's scene, where Ham- 
let picks up the skull of Yorick and soliloquizes upon it, a 
soldier in the back part of the audience rose up and halloed 
out at the top of his voice, "Say pard, what is it, Yank or 
Reb?" Of course the whole house came down, and Grant 
said, "We had better get out of here." We left, and no one 
knew that the two great soldiers of the age had been listen- 
ing. 

General Sherman suggested we should have an oyster sup 
per, and put General Rawlins forward to find a place. Raw- 
lins took us to a very nice restaurant. As we entered, he saw 
there Avas only a small table vacant, but at a large table that 



Personal .Recollection s of Sherman. 141 

would seat our party was only one man ; and Kawlins, without 
saying who we were, asked him if he would move to the small 
table. The man looked at him with astonishment, and said 
'The table was good enough for him," and Rawlins, disgust- 
ed, turned and went out, and we followed. General Sherman 
said if we depended on Rawlins, we would get no oysters, and 
hailed a policeman, who pointed out an oyster saloon in a base- 
ment, kept by a widow. We went in, seated ourselves, and 
Sherman ordered the oysters. It was the first time we had 
been together so we could talk, and we naturally entered into 
conversation, and time passed. When we were about half 
through with our meal, the widow proprietress came in and 
told us we must go, as the order was to close at 12 o'clock, and 
we, of course, complied, leaving our meal half completed. We 
returned to General Grant's headquarters and settled down 
for the night, telling the Staff our evening's experience. They 
gave it to the Press, and before we were up the next morning 
the theater manager, the restaurant proprietor, the widow, 
the chief of police, and others were at headquarters to make 
their apologies to General Grant for their lack of courtesy, 
pleading that they did not know who we were. They all 
seemed to think that they committed some act that would 
bring action, closing their houses, or some other punishment. 
But General Grant enjoyed the joke and told them we had no 
complaint to make — in fact had passed an interesting and 
jolly evening. 

At a dinner given us by General Granger, the General's 
mother, or mother-in-law, who had known Sherman when in 
the army, upbraided Sherman for the pillaging and "stealing" 
done by Sherman's soldiers on their march to Knoxville. She 
pecked and pounded away until finally the General turned 
upon her. He said : 

Madam, my soldiers have to subsist even if the whole coun- 
try must be ruined to maintain them. There are two armies 
here; one is in rebellion against the Union, the other is fight- 



142 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

ing for the Union — if either must starve to death, I propose it 
shall not be the army that is loyal. There is nothing too good 
for the soldiers who wear the blue. 

After a pause he added: 

War is cruelty. There is no use in trying to reform it ; the 
crueler it is, the sooner it will be over. 

This response put a cold douche on the dinner and no 
effort of any of us could relieve the strain. The lady said no 
more, for it was a great rebuke. 

General Grant's plan for the winter campaign was that 
he would take about 30,000 men from the Chattanooga Army 
and go down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to New Orleans, 
and with General Canby's Command move upon Mobile. Gen- 
eral Sherman was to go to Vicksburg and take the Seventeenth 
Corps and other troops along the Mississippi, and move from 
Vicksburg to Meridian and join General Grant in the rear of 
Mobile. I was to take my two Divisions of the Sixteenth Army 
Corps, with several thousand Cavalry that had been organ- 
ized by General William Suey Smith in Nashville, and move 
south from Decatur as far as the Tombigbee River, destroy- 
ing the railroads and everything that could be used by the 
enemy, and sweep around into Mississippi and defeat any 
enemy that might be in that country, especially Forrest, if 
there, and move back by way of West Tennessee to Middle 
Tennessee, virtually making it impossible for any army to oc- 
cupy that country. 

We returned to our commands to prepare for this cam- 
paign, but when General Grant informed the authorities in 
Washington of his plans, President Lincoln objected very much 
to his taking any forces from Chattanooga, fearing that Long- 
street, who was laying in East Tennessee, might try to re-occu- 
py that country. This caused General Grant to go to East 
Tennessee with a view of attacking Longstreet and driving 
him out before he made the southern campaign. 



Personal Kecollections of Sherm an. 143 

But when he reached Knoxville, he found General Foster, 
who was in command, so very much opposed to the movement 
on account of his lack of troops, and as he claimed that he 
could hold Longstreet in East Tennessee, which would be just 
as effective as driving him out, and the time getting short, 
Grant finally acquiesced in Foster's views, and returned, so 
that the general plan was abandoned, and only General Sher- 
man carried out his part of it, moving out as far west of Vicks- 
burg as Meridian, meeting no enemy, and returning. 

General Grant always regretted that he did not carry out 
his original purpose of moving upon Longstreet and driving 
him out of East Tennessee. 

On March 4th, 1864, General Grant received his appoint- 
ment as Lieutenant-General to command all the United States 
armies, and repaired to Washington to receive his commission. 
On his return from Washington we were all called to Nash- 
ville to meet him, and General Grant outlined his plans for 
our coming campaign. Grant was desirous of taking some of 
the officers, who had served with him in the West, to the east- 
ern army. Sherman protested, desiring to have his army left 
intact, but Sheridan finally was selected and taken, against his 
protest, all the rest being left. Sherman went with Grant as 
far east as Cincinnati. During the reunion of the Army of the 
Tennessee at Cincinnati, in 1889, at the banquet in the Burnett 
House, Sherman pointed out to me the room where Grant and 
he sat down with their maps and came to their agreement as 
to the general movement that was to be made in Grant's cam- 
paign in May, 1864, which was to close the war. The agree- 
ment, as Sherman stated it to me, was for each to take care of 
the enemy in his part of the country, and Grant was to move 
all of the armies at once. Both agreed that they would each 
hold the enemy in their front; that although the rebels had the 
interior lines it would be the duty of each to prevent the move- 
ment of any of the enemy's forces from the front of one to the 



144 .Personal Recollections of Sheuman. 



other; and we all know how well they accomplished their 
purpose. 

Grant said to Sherman : 

If Lee sends any of his troops to your front, I will send you 
twice hs many men as he sends Johnston. 

And during the campaign Sherman often said : 

We must press Johnston so that under no circumstances 
can they detach a Corps or any part of their command to re- 
inforce Lee. 

After the Battle of Chattanooga the Government had been 
issuing and selling rations to the citizens of Tennessee. When 
(General Sherman prepared for his Atlanta campaign he knew 
that its success depended upon his ability to feed his men 
and animals, and he therefore issued Order No. 8, stopping 
this issue to citizens. In a few days he received this dispatch 
from President Lincoln, dated May 4, 1864: 

I have an imploring appeal from the citizens, who say your 
order, No. 8, will compel them to go north to Nashville. This 
is in no sense an order, nor is it even a request that you will 
do anything which in the least shall be a drawback upon your 
military operations, but anything you can do consistently 
with the appeals of these suffering people I should be glad of. 

On May 5th, General Sherman sent an answer characteris- 
tic of the man and General : 

A. Lincoln, President : 

We have worked hard with the best talent of the country, 
and it is demonstrated that the railroad cannot supply the 
army and the people, too — one of them must quit — and the 
army does not intend to unless Joe Johnston makes us. The 
issues to citizens have been enormous, and the same weight of 
corn and oats would have saved thousands of mules whose car- 
easses now corduroy the roads, and which we need so much in 
war. I will not change my order, and I beg of you to be sat- 
isfied that the clamor is partly humbug and for effect. I ad- 
vise you to tell the bearers of appeals to hurry to Kentucky 
and make up a column of cattle and wagons and go over the 



Pkusoxal Recollections of Sherman. 145 

mountains on foot by < Jumberland Gap and Somerset to relieve 
their suffering friends, as they used to before the railroad was 
built. Tell them they have no time to lose. We can relieve 
all actual suffering by each company and regiment giving 
their savings. Every man who is willing to fight and work 
gets full rations, and all who will not fight and work we offer 
them free passage in the cars. 

In April, 1864, the first intimations were sent, confiden- 
tially to the Corps Commanders, for the concentration of our 
forces and the movement of our troops. During my command 
in Middle Tennessee 1 bad raised several regiments of colored 
troops, with General Sherman's approval, although he was 
criticised very severely for taking no colored troops with 
him. His answer to me on that criticism was : 

I propose to leave the colored troops to occupy our lines 
of communication, where they can have the protection of en- 
trenchments, and a chance to drill; and I do not propose in 
this campaign that the rebels shall say that for me to whip 
them it was necessary to take part of their niggers to do it. 

So, in April, when he sent his orders. I wrote him that I 
proposed to take every white soldier on my line with me, and 
he, without answering my letter, sent me an order to go for- 
ward with my forces, but to leave one white Brigade (naming 
its commander) at Decatur: and in pursuance to these com- 
mands I commenced marching towards Chattanooga. When 
I was about half way there. T received a note from General 
McPherson telling me to put my forces upon the cars and with 
my ammunition reach Chattanooga before the 5th of May, 
leaving my trains and artillery to follow by wagon road. We 
arrived there on the morning of the 5th without tents or ra- 
tions, and I immediately found our army commander, Gen- 
eral McPherson. who was waiting for us. I remember that at 
the breakfast table at the hotel I was greatly surprised to find 
the knives and forks chained to the table, and concluded that 
the reputation of Sherman's ''bummers" had preceded us. 



146 Personal Recollections of .Sherman. 

Sherman had evidently held consultation with the array 
commanders before I arrived, because he said to McPherson : 
"I think I had better read Dodge these dispatches." And then 
he sat down and read those celebrated dispatches that passed 
between Grant and himself from May 1st to May 5th, which 
have all been published. "When he had finished he said, "Now 
Dodge, you see what you have to do. Where are your 
troops?" I said, "They are unloading." He said to Mc- 
Pherson: "I think you had better send Dodge to Ship's Gap 
tonight." McPherson said: "Why General, that is thirty 
miles away." Sherman said, "No matter, let him try it." I 
asked for a guide, and McPherson said if they could find one 
they would send him to me. Sherman gave me a map with the 
road and gap, known as Ship's Gap. in the firsl fringe of moun- 
tains, marked, that I was to capture, and that night about 
midnight General Sprague, commanding a Brigade of Veatch's 
4th Division of the Sixteenth Army Corps, reached the summit 
of the gap, and made the first opening through that range of 
mountains. This enabled us to pass through Snake Creek Gap 
before the enemy discovered the movement to their rear. To 
ray own surprise and to the surprise of everybody else, we 
pushed through that long narrow gorge before midnight of the 
8th, one day ahead of the time fixed, where one regiment of 
cavalry properly posted could have held us and forced a bat 
tie. Johnston's troops did not attack us until the morning of 
the 9th, so that the first plans of Sherman, as he has said to 
me, were so successful and so satisfactory that he thought the 
Array of the Tennessee should have planted itself across the 
railroad near Resaca in the rear of Johnston, which would 
have forced him to abandon his trains and fight us, or make a 
long detour to the east. That question had been fought over 
in the papers, and by the different officers, but Sherman, up 
to the time of his death, always felt and claimed that if the 
fifteen thousand men we had with us had been planted and 



Personal Eecollections of Sherman. L41 



entrenched squarely in front of Resaca, it would have broken 
up Johnston's army. 

I was too young an officer then to discuss these matters, 
but simply obeyed my orders, and I do not propose at this 
time to criticise the actions of General McPherson, or to pass 
judgment upon the opinion of Sherman, because it can do no 
good. There is no question that there never was a braver or 
more loved and trusted General in our Army than McPher- 
son, and if he made a mistake, there is no person in or out of 
the army that does not know that he made it in the interest 
of what he considered to be his duty, and I claim that no one 
can now criticise him for it, for Sherman, after it was all over, 
never did. Our rapid movement surprised Johnston, and ac- 
complished the principal object of the movement to his rear, 
forcing him out of his impregnable position at Dalton. and 
driving him south of the Ostanaula River. 

During the march from Chattanooga to Atlanta we were 
very short of all kinds of provisions, canned fruits, vegetables, 
etc. We lived off bread, beans and bacon. T had been suf- 
fering during the whole of the campaign, was run down a 
good deal physically, and thought if I could get a change of 
food it would help keep me up. I went over to General Sher- 
man's headquarters and asked him to allow me to send by 
Lieutenant Bailey (who had been detailed from my command 
in charge of the mails running from Nashville to the front), 
to bring me down some dried fruits and vegetables. I told 
Sherman that T was running down ; that I had a very bad wound 
in the side, and it seemed impossible to keep it from sapping 
away my strength. Sherman looked at me and said : "Dodge, 
all you want is some good whiskey," and toot, me to his tent. 
Good or bad whiskey just then was entirely different to me 
from what it is now, but. of course, I submitted. T urged my 
necessity upon the General, but he said it was impossible to 
allow me to bring forward anything: that if he did it for one 



L48 Pjkksonal Recollections of Sherman. 



he would have to do il for others; and T went away greatly 
disappointed, Avhich Sherman saw. There was no way to get 
anything without his permission. It Avas not more than a day 
or so after that that Colonel Dayton, his adjutant, happened 
to be at my headquarters, and asked one of the staff officers 
if I had sent to Nashville for anything. The staff officer in- 
formed him that I had applied and could not get permission, 
and that under the circumstances 1 would not send. Dayton 
told the staff officer if they could gei it through by Bailey to 
do so, that Genera] Sherman, he knew, would not object, but. 
says h<\ "'You don't want to say anything to Dodge," and the 
first thing I knew there came to my headquarters ;i box of 
supplies. It was a lung time afterwards before f knew how 
they had been brought there. Jt is the only case in my ex- 
perience where Sherman relaxed one of his orders. 

The history of the Atlanta campaign has been written ; 
nothing I can say about it can add to or take from it. It is 
the unwritten instanees that I propose to talk about. I had a 
Corps command all the way from Corinth, Miss., to Marietta, 
Ga., with only the rank of a Brigadier-General. Probably 
there was never a greater effort made by Grant and Sherman 
to give me a rank suitable to my command, and avoid un- 
pleasant complications, than as we marched down to Kenesaw. 
I was in command of that portion in the field of the Sixteenth 
Army Corps of the Army of the Tennessee, with officers of 
much higher rank holding lesser commands. This brought 
upon me many remarks that my staff would hear and repeat 
to me, and was annoying and made me uncomfortable. I sat 
down and wrote to General Sherman, explaining to him fully, 
that these criticisms had come to me, and that they made me 
feel very uncomfortable, thai my staff were always talking 
about it; rumor stating that this and that officer was going to 
relieve me, and I said to Sherman that T thought he had bet- 



Personal Recollections or Sher man. L4£) 

ter give me a command better fitted to my rank, and relieve me 
and him. He put this endorsement upon the paper: 

Suppose you wait until someone that has a right to com- 
plain does so; and go ahead and do your duty, and not trouble 
yourself about other's business. 

W. T. SHERMAN. 

He did not even sign it officially. He never referred to it 
during the war, but afterwards poked a good deal of fun at 
me for my foolish action. He soon after sent me a telegraphic 
dispatch that came from the President, telling him that he had 
relieved him from his difficulties about Dodge. My commis- 
sion reached me, and I donned my two stars. 

Sherman always sustained his officers who assumed great 
authority in an emergency, although they might he wrong. As 
an instance I give yon the following: 

Before General Sherman crossed the Chattahoochee for his 
attack upon Atlanta, his army was stretched from Soap Creek 
to Sandtown Ferry, facing the river. My Corps, the 16th. was 
upon the extreme right, and 1 thought the crossing was to he 
by the right flank, as it was so much nearer to Atlanta, and 
my orders were to seize all ferry boats and other means of 
crossing. General Sherman came to my headquarters, took 
out his map, and asked how long it would take me to con- 
struct a bridge across the river at Roswell, some thirty miles 
away beyond our extreme left, telling me it was rock bot- 
tom and could he forded, and that there was a road bridge at 
that point which the Confederates had destroyed. I sup- 
posed I would have to go into the woods and cut timber, and 
told him it would require at least a week. He had not been 
gone more than an hour when 1 received orders from General 
McPherson to move to Roswell, and that General Sherman 
would communicate directly with me. The march was a hot, 
dusty one, in the rear of the army, but I did not halt, except 
for our meals, and an occasional hour's rest. 1 received at 



150 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 



Marietta a dispatch from Sherman urging me to get there 
as soon as possible. 

On arriving, I immediately put a Brigade across the river, 
and it was as fine a sight as I ever saw when Fuller's Ohio 
Brigade, in line of battle, forded the river. The enemy's cav- 
alry held the other side. As they moved across, holding their 
guns and cartridge boxes high above their heads, the bands 
of the Corps struck up a lively tune. The rebels poured in a 
heavy fire, but it whs too high. Now and then a boy would 
step into a hole and disappear for a moment, but all got across 
and immediately sought shelter under the steep-cut bank, 
where Fuller reformed and made his charge, clearing out the 
enemy in short order, and built a strong tete de pent. 

Roswell had cotton and woolen factories that had been 
running up to the time that General Garrard's cavalry cap- 
tured them, and burned most of the factories. The operatives 
were mostly women, and these Garrard moved to Marietta by 
detailing a regiment of cavalry, each member of which took 
one of the operatives on his horse, and in this way they were 
all taken into Marietta, and were sent north by Sherman. 
Over the proprietor's house was flying a French flag. T saw 
immediately that if I utilized the balance of the buildings 1 
could erect the bridge in half the time, and instructed Cap- 
tain Armstrong, who had charge of the 1,500 men detailed to 
build the bridge, to tear down the buildings which were left 
from Garrard's fire, and utilize them. The next morning some 
of my officers, who were better lawyers than 1 was, told me 
that the proprietor was making a strong protest, and that 1 
was liable to get into trouble on account of violation of inter- 
national law. Although I was using the material, I thought 
it best to write General Sherman a letter, stating what I had 
done, and what the claims were, at the same time notifying 
him that by using this material I would have the bridge com- 
pleted by Wednesday. 1 arrived there by noon on Monday. 



Personal Recollections of Sherm an. 151 

the 10th of July. Sherman answered in the following charac- 
teristic letter: 

Headquarters, Military Division of the Mississippi, 
In the Field Near Chattahoochee River, 

July 11, 1864. 
General Dodge, Roswell, Ga. : 

I know you have a big job, but that is nothing new for you. 
Tell General Newton that his Corps is now up near General 
Schofield's Crossing, and all is quiet thereabout. He might 
send down and move his camps to proximity of his Corps, but 
I think Roswell and Shallow Ford so important that I prefer 
him to be near you until you are well fortified. If he needs 
rations tell him to get his wagons up, and I think you will be 
able to spare him day after tomorrow. T know the bridge at 
Roswell is important, and you may destroy all Georgia to 
make it good and strong. 

\Y. T. SHERMAN, Major-Gen eral, Commanding. 

You will perceive it is very diplomatic ; he says nothing in 
relation to international law, or the French flag, but ends his 
letter by telling me that I may destroy all Georgia to accom- 
plish what I am sent -to do. Of course I read between the 
lines, and paid no further attention to the French flag. After 
the war great claims were made, and we were censured by 
the Government, which I have no doubt paid roundly for the 
factories. 

On July 12, just three days after 1 arrived there, I noti- 
fied General Sherman that the bridge was completed, and the 
army commenced crossing on the final movement to Atlanta. 
Sherman was greatly surprised, as it had been represented to 
him, by officers he had sent there, that it would require a much 
longer time to erect the bridge. 

.My official report read as follows : 

A foot bridge 710 feet long was thrown across the river, 
and from Monday noon, July 10, until Wednesday night, July 
12, a good substantial, double track, trestle road bridge, 710 
feet long and 14 feet high, was built by the pioneer Corps from 
the command. 



152 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

As the Fifteenth, Logan's Corps, was crossing the bridge, 
there came up a terrible thunder storm, and several of the men 
were knocked down while on the bridge, and a bolt struck in 
the midst of Murray's regular battery of the Sixteenth Corps, 
which was holding the bridge head across the river, killing 
and wounding several men. Naturally the superstition of the 
soldiers was aroused and all kinds of misfortunes were pre- 
dicted, and sure enough in the next engagement, on the 22d 
of July, at the Battle of Atlanta, the battery was captured, 
while going from Blair's front to mine, by the same skirmish 
line of Cleburne's Division that killed McPherson on the road 
leading from my right to Blair's left. In fact, he fell right 
at the foot of one of the guns that had been captured. 

The moment our army crossed the bridge our movement 
upon Atlanta began. It was the 10th or 20th of July when 
one of the spies, a boy of the Second Iowa Infantry, whom I 
had sent into the enemy's lines long before, came out to my 
lines and brought the morning paper and the news of the 
change of commanders from General Johnston to General 
Hood. I took him over to the road upon which Sherman was 
marching. He was with General Schofield's column. Sher- 
man and Schofield, and someone else whom I cannot remember, 
discussed the news, and T remember distinctly Schofield giv- 
ing his opinion of Hood- — that it meant fight. While I stood 
there Listening and watching, General Sherman sat down upon 
a stump and issued bis orders, that concentrated his armies 
and brought McPherson from Stone Mountain, some twenty 
miles away, and closed us all in on Thomas, showing he fully 
comprehended the situation. Soon after. Mood, with his army 
attacked Thomas, intending to double him up from right to 
left, knowing how greatly extended Sherman's forces were. 

After the battle of the 20th, we closed in around Atlanta. 
The concentration of- the lines threw the Sixteenth Army 
Corps in reserve, and a Brigade of it was sent to the left of the 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. L53 

army and encamped behind the Seventeenth Corps, and an- 
other Brigade, Sprague's, was left at Decatur to protect the 
trains. That night there was a belief that Hood would evacu- 
ate Atlanta; in the morning it was reported that he had done 
so, in fact I received from the extreme left where one of my 
Brigades lay, reports to that effect from General Puller. Lat- 
er in the morning McPherson came to see me, as he was in the 
habit of doing; if there was any movement on hand he would 
come and tell us what he expected, and if not, he would have a 
kind, encouraging word for us, or a compliment for what had 
been done the day before. He was a man who issued very 
few orders on the field, and in this respect he was a good deal 
like Grant, who pointed out what was to be done and expected 
you, as Commander, to do it without entering into details, but 
left us at liberty to do Avhatever was considered besl in the 
changes of the fight or the movements of the troops, expect 
ing us to accomplish what he had told us was his objective 
point. McPherson was the same way, and when a movement 
was on hand, or when the army lay in front of the enemy, Mc- 
Pherson was in the habit of coming round, sitting down, talk 
ing matters over, and finally getting up to the point withnui 
giving an order, simply giving us the benefit of his great ex- 
perience. I know he came to me in this way frequently, be- 
cause 1 was a young officer and likely, perhaps, to go wrong 
quicker than those who were veterans in the service. 

McPherson, that morning, came to my headquarters and or- 
dered me to move out to the left of Blair's Seventeenth Army 
Corps, and when they moved to their new position, that he was 
that day intrenching, 1 was to join him and stretch as far to the 
left as possible, and if I saw a chance, was to grab and hold the 
Macon road. Tt seemed Sherman had intended to use my Corps 
for a different purpose, and had ordered McPherson to assign 
the Sixteenth Corps to the breaking up of the railroads east, 
towards, and beyond Decatur, but this order T did not know 



L54 Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 

anything about, nor did it reach me. McPherson received the 
orders after giving me my orders, and did not send them to 
me, and it was while pursuing McPherson 's orders to move to 
the left that, at 12 o'clock on the 22d, nearly all of Hood's army 
got to our rear and made that terrible attack upon us, and, 
after fighting from noon until midnight was defeated at all 
points. 

There is probably nothing in all Sherman's military 
career that he criticised more severely, to himself and to his 
confidential friends, than the fact that when this great battle 
was going on at the left, where thousands of men were being 
mowed down, where the roar of musketry lasted from 12 :00 
noon until midnight, he did not force the Army of the Cum- 
berland and Ohio, over 50,000 strong, .which stood intact that 
day, not firing a gun, into Atlanta and take it, for there was 
nothing in Atlanta except Georgia militia and teamsters. 
Sherman's statement is that he requested General Thomas to 
attack Atlanta, and if possible go into it. He told him a great 
battle was going on to the left, because it is well known to 
everyone in an army that one wing, when the wind is in the 
opposite direction, may fight a great battle, while the other 
wing, miles away, could only know of it by rumor. Thomas 
felt the enemy, and seeing the works held by the militia, an- 
swered that Hood's army was in Atlanta, that the works were 
fully manned, and it was not possible for it to be successfully 
attacked in his front. So all day long that little Army of the 
Tennessee, that was never known to give back an inch, fought 
and struggled and held its own against double numbers, 
thinking and believing that morning would show Atlanta 
theirs, for they knew that the whole of Hood's army was upon 
t hern. 

At 2 o'clock in the day McPherson fell. I had no knowl- 
edge of his death, although he was killed near my line, until 
I received word from General Fuller, whom 1 had instructed 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 155 

to change front to his right and clean out the enemy between 
him and the Seventeenth Corps, that he had captured the 
skirmish line of the enemy and taken from them General Mc- 
Pherson's field glasses and orders of Sherman to McPherson. 
The first news I received was that McPherson had been 
wounded, not killed, and it was 4 o'clock in the afternoon 
when Logan came to me asking for help to retake the line on 
the Augusta road, where the enemy had broken through and 
captured DeGresse's battery; I gave him Mersey's Brigade, 
but even then he did not tell me he was in command of the 
army. He came to me as we were in the habit of doing — 
Logan, Blair and myself — when one was hard pushed and 
the other was not, we sent troops without orders where they 
were most needed. 

After the day's fight was over, and at 10 o'clock at night. 
Logan called Blair and myself to meet him, Logan then being 
in command of the army ; we met in the rear of the Fifteenth 
Corps, under an oak tree on the line of the Augusta railroad. 
and discussed the results of the day. The fighting on Blair's 
right and Logan's left at Bald Hill was still progressing. Wp 
only knew then that we had held the enemy, and did not 
know how much we had punished them. 

Blair's men were in the trenches in some places on his 
front, the enemy held one side and he the other. The men 
of the Fifteenth Corps were still in their own line, tired and 
hungry, but those of the Sixteenth Corps, after their hard 
day's work, were busy throwing up intrenchnients on the field 
they had held and won. At Logan's request I sent Mersey's 
Brigade to relieve Blair's men at the critical point on Bald 
Hill. 

Logan and Blair thought that the Army of the Cumber- 
land or the Army of the Ohio should send a portion of the 
forces and relieve some of our exhausted men, and I was sent 
to see Sherman. My recollection now is that T met him in a 



156 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

tent, though it is said officially that he had his headquarters at 
the Howard House. When I met him he seemed surprised to 
see me, but greeted me cordially and spoke of the great loss 
of McPherson. I stated to him my errand. He turned upon 
me and said: "Dodge, you whipped them today didn't you?" 
I said, "Yes sir." Then he said, "Can't you do it again to- 
morrow?" and I said, 'Yes sir." I bade him good night and 
went back to my command, resolving never again to be sent 
on such an errand. Sherman explained to me afterwards that 
he knew what orders he had given to press Atlanta, and hold 
the forces in the intrenchments surrounding it, and he want- 
ed it said that the little Army of the Tennessee had fought 
the great battle without any help, and he knew from the pun- 
ishment that the rebel army had received that Hood would 
not dare to attack us in the morning. 

There is no doubt but that, when 1 saw Sherman that 
night, he had ascertained the facts from the reports of the 
different commanders that Atlanta was without organized 
force, and that rather than reinforce the little Army of the 
Tennessee, he wished to impress the fact that he was respon- 
sible for not taking Atlanta, and did not propose to relieve 
himself of any criticism. He has since said to us, in his own 
quiet way, that he thought we ought to have taken Atlanta 
that day, but 1 have never heard him make any criticisms, or 
make any claim that any officer was to blame for not doing it, 
except himself; while they who watched and were a part of 
that great battle seemed to think that Thomas with 50,000 
veterans ought to have poured into Atlanta while McPher- 
son and Logan with only 20,000 men met and defeated one of 
the best planned and best executed attacks to the left, rear 
and front made in that campaign. 

General Schotield, who commanded the Army of the Ohio, 
who was with General Sherman at the time of the attack of 
Stewart's Corps along the Augusta road, suggested to Sher- 



Personal Kecqllectiqns of Sh erman. 1 r> 7 

man to throw his Corps behind and on the fiank of Stewart, 
thus breaking Stewart's communication with the intrench- 
nients of Atlanta, hut Sherman for some reason did not ap- 
prove of it. 

The loss of General McPherson was greatly lamented by 
the entire army. lie had endeared himself to the Army of the 
Tennessee, and General Sherman spoke his sentiments in 
this dispatch : 

Headquarters, Military Division of the Mississippi, 
In the Field Near Atlanta, Georgia, 

July 23d, 1864. 
General L. Thomas, Adjutant-General United States Army. 

Washington, I). < !. 

General: — It is my painful duty to report that Major-Gen- 
eral James B. McPherson, United States Army, Major-General 
of Volunteers and commander of the Army of the Tennessee, 
was killed by a shot from an ambuscade about noon of yes- 
terday. At the time of the fatal shot he was on horseback, 
placing his troops in position near the city of Atlanta, and 
was passing across a road from a moving column towards the 
Hank of troops that had already been established on the line. 
Re had quitted me but a few moments before, and was on his 
way to see in person to the execution of my orders. About 
the time of this sad event the enemy had rallied from his in- 
trenchments of Atlanta, and, by a circuit, got to the left and 
rear of this very line and had begun an attack which resulted 
in a serious battle, so that General McPherson fell in battle, 
booted and spurred, as the gallant and heroic gentleman 
should wish. Not his loss, but the country's, and the army 
will mourn his death and cherish his memory as that of one 
who, though comparatively young, had risen by his merit ami 
ability to the command of one of the best armies which the 
Nation had called into existence to vindicate her honor and 
integrity. History tells of but few who so blended the grace 
and gentleness of the friend with the dignity, courage, faith 
and manliness of the soldier. His public enemies, even the 
men who directed the fatal shot, never spoke or wrote of him 
without expressions of marked respect. Those whom he com- 
manded loved him even to idolatry, and I, his associate and 
commander, fail in words adequate to express my opinion of 
his great worth. I feel assured that every patriot in America 
on hearing this sad news will feel a sense of personal loss, and 



158 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

the country generally will realize that we have lost not only 
an able military leader, but a man who, had he survived, was 
qualified to heal the national strife which has been raised by 
designing and ambitious men. His body has been sent north 
in charge of Major "Willard, Captains Steele and Gile, his per- 
sonal staff. 

T am with respect, 

W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General, Commanding. 

From this dispatch, it shows that -General Sherman did 
not have proper knowledge of the attack of Hood's army in our 
rear, in which McPherson was killed. My Corps had been 
fighting desperately for nearly two hours, and McPherson had 
been watching them, and when he saw me defeat three des- 
perate charges of the enemy on my lines, and hold them 
against the enemy's attack, who had a force three times mine. 
General McPherson left me to go to Blair, who was also in a 
desperate fight on his front and left rear, and was killed. 

Rev. Thomas B. Sherman, in speaking to the Society of the 
Army of the Tennessee, paid a fine tribute to the fighting of 
the Sixteenth Army Corps on this day, and said in part: 

How fortunate for the Army of the Tennessee that Dodge's 
Corps, the Sixteenth, lies in our rear; how more than provi- 
dential that Dodge is a man rather than a theorist. Instantly 
he apprehends the deadly peril. Swiftly he readjusts his 
Corps, facing the enemy. Cutting all red tape, he is a colonel, 
brigadier, and division commander all in one. While Hardee's 
Corps moves out of the Chaparral and up against us in dread 
array of battle line, with good artillery support thundering be- 
fore them, without waiting to let the enemy have the plan of 
attack and the momentum of surprise, charge is met by coun- 
ter-charge ; our cannon bay in answer to their thunder, our 
banners bend forward, our lines advance. Dodge is every- 
where, dashing up and down his lines, lending his own sturdy 
spirit to every soldier in his Corps and the day is saved — in 
our rear, surprise and disaster are changed to victory! Again 
and again the brave Confederates madly charge. Again and 
again we meet them breast to breast and dash them back dis- 
comfitted. 

Sir, your presence here tonight may not save you from tho 
much-deserved honor of this poor tribute to those splendid 



Personal Recollections of Sher man. 159 

qualities, for which the Army of the Tennessee holds yon in 
eternal honor. In the name of the most gallant army, and in 
the name of my loved and honored father, I thank you, sir, 
for saving the fate of our National army at the famous Battle 
of Atlanta. 

After the battle of the 22d we swung from the left to the 
right, and it fell to my lot to hold the lines while the rest of 
the army drew out. I heard of the change of the commander 
of the Army of the Tennessee — from General Logan to General 
Howard. I did not know the reasons, but felt that the little 
army that had served under Grant, Sherman, McPherson and 
Logan, and had fought a battle all day, part of the time by 
itself, without a commander, and had whipped the whole of 
Hood's army, had certainly left in it material enough to com- 
iii and itself. 1 had never met General Howard, and while I 
knew him to be an experienced and good soldier, it made no 
difference in my feelings ; and I think after Howard com- 
manded that army and placed it in battle, felt its pulse and 
saw what it was. he felt just as we did. On the march 
from the left to the extreme right I saw General Sher- 
man at a log house. General Logan was sitting on the porch ; 
he hardly recognized me as I walked in, and I saw a great 
change in him. I asked General Sherman what the change 
in commanders meant — why Logan was not left in command. 
As everyone knows, Logan's independence and criticisms in 
the army were very severe, but they all knew what he was in 
a fight, and whenever we sent to Logan for aid he would nol 
only send his forces, but come himself, so. as Blair said, we 
only knew Logan as we saw him in battle. 

Logan could hear every word that was said between Sher- 
man and myself. Sherman did not feel at liberty to say any- 
thing in explanation of this change. He simply put me off 
very firmly but nicely as he could, and spoke highly of Gen- 
eral Howard, who had been given the command. I went away 
from the place without any satisfaction, and when T mel 



160 Personal Eecollections of Shermax. 

Logan on the outside I expressed to him my regrets, and I 
said to him: "There is something here that none of ns under- 
stand." Logan said: "It makes no difference: it will all come 
right in the end." 

The first meeting I had with General Howard was on that 
morning, and I wish to say that while I remained with him. 
and ever since the war, there has been no one that was kinder 
to me, or who* has said kinder things. I am sorry it was not 
my fortune to have been able to follow him through to Wash- 
ington. 

At the close of the war when General Sherman came to St. 
Louis, he explained to me the reason he did not give the com- 
mand of the Army of the Tennessee to General Logan. He 
said he consulted General Thomas and told him that General 
Logan was entitled to the command, but Thomas objected very 
decidedly, and Sherman said to him: "That it placed him in a 
very difficult position." Thomas said, "If he gave Logan the 
command he should feel like asking to be relieved." Sher- 
man said, "Why, Thomas, you would not do that!" And 
Thomas answered, "No, I should not, but I feel that the army 
commanders should be on friendly terms, and Logan and I 
could not." Sherman answered, "It would be very embarrass- 
ing for me to ignore Logan." Thomas then said, "Let the 
President name the commander." Sherman replied, "No, it is 
his duty, and I will perform it." Sherman said under the 
circumstances, he felt it was to the best interest of his army, 
on account of General Thomas' strong protest, to select a com- 
mander outside of our army, and he discussed with Thomas 
who should be selected. General Hooker was the senior officer, 
but both of them said he would not do ; and General Sherman 
said lie selected Howard as he had pleased him very much in 
his action under him at Chattanooga, and in the efficiency he 
showed in their march to Knoxville to relieve Burnside. How- 
ard was in command of the Fourteenth Corps, and had seen 



Personal Recollections of Sherman . 161 

long and important service in the East. And so Major-Gen- 
eral HoAvard was given the command of the Army of the Ten- 
nessee. This caused a protest from General Hooker, and he. 
at his own request, was relieved from further service in Sher- 
man's army. 

After the war, General Sherman and General Logan, hoth 
being friends of mine, I then endeavored to bring about a set- 
tlement of the difficulties between them. Knowing the real 
reason why Sherman didn't put Logan in command of the 
army, I felt that he should make such reason known to Logan, 
and see if it would not make a difference in their feelings in 
the matter. 

It was a great disappointment to Logan, of course, and to 
all the Army of the Tennessee, that he didn't take command. 
My correspondence with Logan and Sherman did not seem to 
result in any settlement, though both of them expressed high 
opinions of each other. 

It was a great satisfaction to me that Sherman brought the 
conciliation about himself, and on December 28th, 1886, Gen- 
eral Sherman, in a letter to Whitelaw Read, editor of the New 
York Tribune, set forth fully the circumstances of that con- 
ciliation as follows: 

At a banquet in February, 1883, in Washington, at which 
General Logan and General Sherman were present, General 
Logan paid this fine tribute to General Sherman: 

They were ready in the storm and in the sunlight ; they 
were ready in the darkness or daylight ; when orders came they 
marched, they moved, they fought ; whether their guns were of 
the best quality or not; whether their clothing was adapted 
to their condition or not; whether their food was all they 
would have asked or not — was not the question with these 
men. The question was, "Where does Sherman want us to 
go, and when must we move?" Sir, these men marched with 
him through valleys, over hills and mountains, across rivers, 
and over marshes, and the only question asked in all these cam- 
paigns was. "Where is the enemy?" There were no ques- 



162 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

tions of numbers or time. And for General Sherman, I will 
say, there was not a soldier who bore the American flag, or fol- 
lowed it; not a soldier who carried the musket or drew a 
sabre, who did not respect him as his commander. There was 
not one, sir, but would have drawn his sword at any time to 
have preserved his life. There is not one today, no matter 
what may be said, that would dim in the slightest degree the 
lustre of that bright name, achieved by ability, by integrity, 
and by true bravery as an officer. And in conclusion, let me 
say this: While that army, when it was disbanded, was ab- 
sorbed in community like raindrops in the sand — all citizens 
in the twinkling of an eye — and back to their professions, and 
their business, there is not one of these men, scattered as they 
are, from ocean to ocean, who does not honor the name of the 
man who led them to triumph through the enemy's land. 
Wherever he may go, wherever he may be, whatever may be 
his condition in life, there is not one who would not stretch 
out a helping hand to that brave commander w T ho led them to 
glory. Speaking for that army, if I may be permitted to 
speak for it, I have to say, "May the choicest blessings that 
God showers upon the heads of men go with him along down 
through his life." Tt is the prayer of every soldier who served 
under him. 

General Sherman went immediately over to General Logan 
and thanked him most cordially, and wrote him this letter: 

Washington, D. C, Sunday, Feb. 11, 1883. 
General John A. Logan, U. S. Senate, 

Washington, D. C. 
Dear General : 

This is a rainy Sunday, a good day to clear up old scores, 
and I hope you will receive what I propose to write in the 
same friendly spirit in which I offer it. 

I was very much touched by the kind and most complimen- 
tary terms in which you spoke of me personally at the recent 
Corkhill banquet, on the anniversary of my sixty -third birth- 
day, and have since learned that you still feel a wish that I 
should somewhat qualify the language I used in my Memoirs. 
Volume 2, pages 85 and 86, giving the reasons why General 
0. 0. Howard was recommended by me to succeed McPherson 
in the command of the Army of the Tennessee, when by the 
ordinary rules of the service, the choice should have fallen to 
you. I confess frankly that my ardent wish is to retire from 
the command of the army with the kind and respectful feel- 
ings of all men, especially of all those who were with me in 



Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 16< 



the days of the Civil War, which must give to me and to my 
family a chief claim of the gratitude of the people of the 
United States. 

I confess that I have tortured and twisted the words used 
on the pages referred to, so as to contain my meaning better 
without offending you, but so far without success. I honestly 
believe that no man today holds in higher honor than myself 
the conduct and action of John A. Logan from the hour when 
he realized that the South meant war. Prior to the war all 
men had doubts, but the moment Fort Sumpter was fired on 
from batteries in Charleston these doubts disappeared as a 
fog, and from that hour thenceforth your course was manly, 
patriotic and sublime. Throughout the whole war I know of 
no single man's career more complete than yours. 

Now as to the" specific matter of this letter. I left Vicks- 
burg in the fall of 1863, by order of General Grant in person, 
with three Divisions of my own Corps (15th) and two of 
Dodge's (16th), to hasten to the assistance of the Army of the 
Cumberland (General Rosecrans commanding), which, accord- 
ing to the then belief had been worsted at Chicamaugua. Blair 
was with me, you were not. We marched through mud and 
water four hundred miles from Memphis, and you joined me 
on the march with an order to succeed me in the command of 
the 15th Corps, a Presidential appointment, which Blair had 
exercised temporarily. Blair was at that time a member of 
Congress, and was afterwards named to command the 17th 
Corps, and actually remained so long in Washington that we 
got to Big Shanty before he overtook us. Again, after the 
Battle of Missionary Ridge and Knoxville, when Howard 
served with me, I went back to Vicksburg and Meridian, leav- 
ing you in command of the 15th Corps along the railroad from 
Stevenson to Decatur. I was gone three months, and when I 
got back you complained to me bitterly against General G. H. 
Thomas — that he claimed for the Army of the Cumberland 
everything, and denied the Army of the Tennessee any use of 
the railroads. I sustained you, and put all Army and Corps 
commanders on an equal footing, making their orders and rail- 
road requisitions of equal force on the depot officers and rail- 
road officials in Nashville. Thomas was extremely sensitive 
on the point, and as you well know had much feeling against 
you personally, which he did not conceal. You also went to 
Illinois more than once to make speeches, and you were also 
absent after the capture of Atlanta and at the time we started 
for Savannah, and you did not join us until we had reached 
there. 

Now I have never questioned the right or propriety of you 
and Blair holding' fast to your constituents by the usual 



164 Personal Kecollections oe Sherman. 

methods ; it was natural and right, but it did trouble me to 
have my Corps commander serving two distinct causes, one 
military, and the other civil or political, and this did influence 
me when I was forced to make choice of an army commander 
to succeed McPherson. This is all I record in my Memoirs: 
it was so and I cannot amend them. Never in speech, writing 
or record, surely not in the Memoirs, do 1 recall applying to 
you and Blair, for I always speak of you together, the term of 
''political generals." If there be such an expression I cannot 
find it now, nor can I recall its use. The only place wherein 
"politics" occur is in the place I have referred to. and whereon 
I explain my own motive and reason for nominating [Toward 
over you and Blair for the vacant post. My reason may have 
been bad, nevertheless it was the reason which decided me 
then, and as a man of honor I was bound to record it. At this 
time, 1883, Thomas being dead, I cannot say more than is in 
the text, viz: That he took strong ground against you, and 1 
was naturally strongly influenced by his outspoken opinion. 
Still, I will not throw off on him, but state to you frankly that 
T then believed the advice I gave Mr. Lincoln was the best 
practicable. General Howard had been with me up to Knox- 
ville and had displayed a zeal and ability which then elicited 
my hearty approbation, and as 1 trusted in a measure to skill- 
ful maneuvers rather than to downright hard fighting, I rec- 
ommended him. My Memoirs were designed to give the im- 
pressions of the hour, and not to pass judgment on the quali- 
ties of men as exemplified in after life. 

If you will point out to me a page or line where 1 can bet 
ter portray your fighting qualities, your personal courage, and 
magnificent example in actual combat, I will be most happy 
to add to or correct the "Memoirs," but when I attempt to 
explain my own motives or reasons you surely will be the first 
man to see thai outside influence will fail. 

My course is run, and for better or w r orse I cannot amend 
it, but if ever in your future you want a witness to your in- 
tense zeal and patriotism, your heroic personal qualities, you 
may safely call on me as long as I live. I surely have watched 
with pride and interesl your career in the United States Sen- 
ate, and will be your advocate if you aim at higher honors. I 
assert with emphasis that 1 never styled you or Blair "politi- 
cal generals," and it 1 used the word "politics" in an offen- 
sive way, it was to explain my own motives for action, and 
not as descriptive. 

Wishing you all honor and happiness on this earth, 1 am 
as always your friend, 

W. T. SHERMAN. 



Personal Recollections ok Sherman. 165 

General Logan answered this letter immediately, as fol- 
lows : 

United States Senate. Washington, I). C, 

Sunday. February 18th, 1883. 
General W. T. Sherman. 

My Dear Sir: — I have delayed acknowledging your letter 
of the 11th inst. up to this time for the reason that I have been 
so much engaged every moment of tin 1 time that ! could not 
sooner do so; for your expression of kindly feeling toward 
me, I tender my grateful acknowledgments. 

1 am inclined, however, my dear general, to the opinion that 
had you fully understood the situation in which I was placed 
at the times mentioned by yon, that I returned North from 
the army for the purpose of taking part in the political con- 
tests then going on, thai perhaps your criticisms on my then 
course would not have been made. I did not do it for the 
purpose of "keeping a hold on my people." I refused a nom- 
ination in my own state, for a very high position, for the rea- 
son that 1 would not have anything to do with parties while 
the war should last, in 1863 when I went home to canvass in 
Illinois, and to help in Ohio, General Grant was fully advised, 
and know T s that although 1 had to make application for leave 
of absence, 1 did not do it of my own volition, but at the re- 
quest of those high in authority. So when 1 left on leave, 
after the Atlanta campaign, for Mr. Lincoln. 1 did it at the 
special and private request of the then President. This T kept 
to myself, and have never made it public, nor do 1 propose 
to do so now, but feel that I may in confidence say this to you, 
that you may see. what prompted my action in the premises. I 
have borne for this reason whatever 1 may have suffered by 
way of criticism, rather than turn criticism on the dead. 

So far as General Thomas having feeling in the matter you 
mentioned, I presume he entertained the same feeling that 
seemed to be general — that no one without a military education 
was to be trusted to command an army; this [ think was the 
feeling then, and is new, and will ever be. I find no fault 
with it; this, as a rule, is probably correct, hut the experience 
of the world has occasionally found exceptions to this rule. I 
certainly never gave General Thomas any occasion to have 
strong feelings against me. 1 did complain that 1 was not on 
an equality with him while 1 commanded between Decatur 
and Stevenson; that my passes on the roads were not recog- 
nized, and I have General Thomas' letter afterward, admitting 
the fact and apologizing to me for the condud of his officers 
in this matter. I. a1 all times, co-operated with him cordially 
and promptly during my slay at Huntsville and at all other 



166 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

times subsequent. Certainly I did for him afterward what 
few men would have done. When ordered to Nashville, with 
a view of superseding him, at Louisville I found the situation 
of matters and I wrote and telegraphed Grant that he, 
Thomas, was doing all he could, and asked to be ordered back 
to my own command, which was done. This I say to show my 
kind feeling for him and to say that if I ever did anything to 
cause him to complain of me I was not aware of it. 

One thing, my dear general, that I feel conscious of. and 
that is that no man ever obeyed your orders more promptly, 
and but few ever did you more faithful service in carrying out 
your plans and military movements than myself. 

I may have done yourself and myself an injustice by not 
disclosing to you the cause of my returning North at the time 
I did, but now you have the reasons for it. I felt in honor that 
I could rest. 

This letter is intended only for full explanation, and for 
yourself only. T do not feel aggrieved as you think, but will 
ever remain your friend. 

Yours truly, 

JOHN A. LOGAN. 

I now with reverence for his memory, admiration for his 
heroism in battle, and love for the man, hereby ratify and con- 
firm every word of his letter of February 18th, 1883. 

I was fully conscious that General Logan felt deeply what 
he believed at the time a great wrong to himself, and that he 
yet continued with unabated ardor, zeal and strength to fight 
to the end for the cause we both held sacred. For the twenty- 
one years since the war has ended, we have been closely asso- 
ciated in many army societies, which treasure the memories of 
the war, have shared the same banquets and spoken to the 
same audiences. Only recently at San Francisco, Seattle, and 
Rock Island, we were together, each a rival to give pleasure 
and do honor to the other, and still later, within the past 
month, he was at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, his rooms next to 
mine, and not a night passed but Ave were together discussing 
old or new events. Both of us were men of strong opinions, 
sometimes of hasty expression, yet ever maintaining the friend- 
ship which two soldiers should bear to each other. Most un- 
doubtedly did I expect him to survive me, and T have 'always 
expressed a wish that he, the then strongest type of the volun- 
teer soldier alive, might become the President of the United 
States. 

It is ordered otherwise, but as it is, he has left to his family 
a name and fame which could have been little increased had 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 16? 



he lived to attain the office for which so many good men con- 
tend, in spite of the experience of the past. 

When the Society of the Army of the Tennessee holds its 
next meeting in Detroit, next September, if living. 1 may have 
more to say on this subject. 

Your friend, 

W. T. SHERMAN. 

The following are the passages from his Memoirs, referred 
to by General Sherman : 

Memoirs of General William T. Sherman. Vol. [I, pages 
85 and 86 : 

But it first became necessary to settle the important ques- 
tion of who should succeed General McPherson. General Lo- 
gan had taken command of the Army of the Tennessee by 
virtue of his seniority, and had done well; but I did not con- 
sider him equal to the command of three Corps. Between him 
and General Blair there existed a natural rivalry. Both were 
men of great courage and talent, but were politicians by na- 
ture and experience, and maybe for this reason they were mis- 
trusted by regular officers like General Schofield, Thomas and 
myself. It was all important that there should exist a feeling 
of perfect understanding among the army commanders, and 
at a conference with General George H. Thomas, at the head- 
quarters of General Thomas J. Woods, commanding a Division 
of the Fourth Corps, he (Thomas) remonstrated warmly 
against my recommending that General Logan should be as- 
signed to the command of the Army of the Tennessee by rea- 
son of his accidental seniority. We discussed fully the merit 
and qualifications of every officer of high rank in the army, and 
finally settled on Major-General 0. 0. Howard as the best 
officer who was present and available for the purpose. On the 
24th of July, T telegraphed to General Halleck this prefer- 
ence and it was promptly ratified by the President. General 
Howard's place in command of the Fourth Corps was filled 
by General Stanley, one of his Division commanders, on recom-- 
mendation of General Thomas. 

All these promotions happened to fall upon West Pointers, 
and doubtless Logan and Blair had some reasons to believe 
that we intended to monopolize the higher honors of the war 
for the regular officers. I remember well my own thoughts 
and feelings at the time, and feel sure that T was not intention- 
ally partial to my class. 1 wanted to succeed in taking Atlan- 
ta, and needed commanders who were purely and technically 
soldiers, men who would obey orders and execute them 
promptly and on time; for T knew that Ave would have to exe- 



168 Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 

cute some difficult maneuvers, requiring the utmost skill, 
nicety, and precision. I believed 1hat General Howard would 
do all these faithfully and well, and I think the result has jus- 
tified my choice. I regarded them both, Generals Logan and 
Blair, as "volunteers," that looked to personal fame and glory 
as auxiliary, and secondary to their political ambition, and 
not as professional soldiers. 

During the battles around Atlanta, and after we had gone 
from the left to the right, it was my misfortune to be given 
a confederate leave, for I was supposed to be fatally wounded. 
The doctor reported to Sherman, and he, desiring to keep the 
news from my family, instructed every telegraph operator to 
send only his dispatches, but in doing this he forgot that there 
was nothing that occurred but what went over the wires imme- 
diately. So the news reached my people that I had been fat- 
ally wounded. Dispatches came to my staff, trying to obtain 
the facts, but they could not reply because of Sherman's or- 
ders. In talking about it afterwards, he said : 

I acted from my instincts. I simply wished to send the 
truth, but I only succeeded in making trouble, and that has al- 
ways happened to me when I tried to be extra cautious; I 
always put my foot in it ; some smart Aleck gets ahead of me. 

As soon as Sherman heard I was wounded he came to my 
tent with Dr. Kiddo, his chief surgeon, and found a surgeon of 
my own Corps in charge of me. As soon as the shock of the 
wound passed away 1 gradually became conscious as to hear- 
ing, but not as to seeing, and the first words I heard were when 
Sherman turned on Dr. Kiddo and said: "Kiddo, Dodge is 
not going to die. See, he is coming to all right." You can 
imagine what my feelings were on hearing talk of that kind 
from Sherman. I recognized his voice, and also the fact that 
probably I was badly hurt. The doctors advised Sherman to 
send me North, but Sherman said: "No, we can keep Dodge 
two weeks, and then he will be all right; we want him with 
his Corps." 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 169 

I considered the fact that he would not let me go to the 
rear until he was forced to swing around south of Atlanta, 
and abandon everything to the north, one of the greatest com- 
pliments he ever paid me. 

I was taken to Greenville, Ind., to a relative, for a rest 
before I was sent to my own home in Iowa. The first or sec- 
ond evening after I arrived in Greenville, as I lay upon my 
cot, I listened to the demonstrations being made by the re- 
turn of the delegates who had been to Chicago and nominated 
MeClellan. I was astonished and indignant to hear cheer after 
cheer given at the station for Jefferson Davis. I could hardly 
realize that I was in a northern state, not having been north 
before since the beginning of the war. I now realize what 
was meant by the term "copperhead" and "fire in the rear." 
As soon as I was able, I sat down and wrote this to Sherman. 
It was some time afterwards when I received his answer, 
which is too characteristic to publish, but it said : 

We will settle with those fellows after Ave get through 
down here. 

While in front of Atlanta, General Sherman wrote this 
remarkable letter to an old friend away in Georgia: 

Headquarters, .Military Division of the Mississippi. 
In the Field Near Atlanta, Georgia, 

August 10th, 1864. 
Daniel M. Martin, Sand Mountain. 

My Dear Friend: — When in Larkinsville last winter, I en- 
quired after you, and could get no positive answer. I wish 
you had sent me your letter of January 22V1, which I have just 
received, for I could have made you feel at ease at once: In- 
deed, do I well remember our old times about Uellefonte, and 
the ride we took to the corn mills, and the little farm where I 
admired the handsome colt and tried to buy it. Time has worn 
on, and you are now an old man, in want, and suffering, and I 
also, no longer young, but leading a hostile army on the very 
road I came when I left Bellefonte, and, at the moment, pour- 
ing into Atlanta the dread missiles of war. seeking the lives of 
its people. And yet. 1 am the same William Teenniseh Sher- 



170 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

man you knew in 1844, with as warm a heart as ever, and 
anxious that peace and plenty shall prevail in this land, and. 
to prove it, 1 defy Jeff Davis, or General Lee, or General Hood 
to make the sacrifice for peace that I will, personally or of- 
ficially. 

I will today lay down my power and my honor — already 
won — will strip myself naked, and my. wift and child stark 
naked in the world as we came, and begin life anew, if the 
people of the South will but cease the war, elect their mem- 
bers of Congress and let them settle, by argument and reason, 
the question growing out of slavery, instead of trying to 
divide our country into two angry halves, to quarrel and fight 
to the end of time. Our country cannot divide by an east and 
west line, and must be one, and if we must fight, let us fight 
it out now, and not bequeath it to our children. I was never a 
politician, but resigned from the army and lived in California 
till 1857, when I came back with my wife and three children, 
who wanted to be near home — Mr. Ewing's, not Mr. Corwin's 
— but I had the old army so ground in my composition that 
civil pursuits were too tame and 1 accepted an offer as presi- 
dent of the Louisiana Military Academy. Therefore, at the 
time of Lincoln's election, I was at Alexandria, on Red River. 

I saw, and you must have seen, that the southern politi- 
cians wanted to bring about secession — separation. They 
could have elected Mr. Douglass but they so managed that 
Lincoln's election *was made certain, and after they had ac- 
complished this, was it honest or fair for them to allege it as a 
cause of war? Did not Mr. Breckenridge as Vice President, in 
his seat declare Mr. Lincoln the lawfully elected President of 
the United States? Was it ever pretended the President was 
our Government? Don't you know that Congress makes laws, 
the supreme court judges them, and the President only exe- 
cutes them? Don't you know that Mr. Lincoln of himself 
could not take away your rights? Now, I was in Louisiana, 
and while the planters and mechanics and industrious people 
were happy and prosperous, the politicians and busybodies 
were scheming and plotting, and got the Legislature to pass an 
ordinance of secession, which was submitted to the people, who 
voted against it, yet the politicians voted the State out, pro- 
ceeded to take possession of the United States mint, the forts, 
the arsenal — and tore down our flag and insulted it. That, too, 
before Mr. Lincoln had got to Washington. I saw these things. 
and begged Bragg and Beauregard, and Governor Moore, and 
a host of other friends to beware. In that was high treason. 
But they answered. "The North was made up of mean manu- 
facturei-s, of traders, of farmers, who would not fight." The 



Personal Recollections or Sherman. 171 

people of the North NEVER dreamed of interfering with the 
slaves or property of the South. They simply voted, AS THEY 
HAD A EIGHT TO DO, and they could not understand why 
the people of the South should begin to take possession of the 
United States forts and arsenals till oar Government had done 
something wrong — something oppressive. The South BEGAN 
the war. You know it. I, and millions of others living at the 
South, know it — but the people of the North were as innocent 
of it as your little grandchild. Even after forts had been 
taken, public arms stolen from our arsenals and distributed 
among the angry militia, the brave and honest freemen of the 
great North could not realize the fact, and did not until 
Beauregard began to tire upon a garrison of United States 
troops, in a fort built by the common treasury of the WHOLE 
country. Then, as by a mighty upheaval, the people rose and 
began to think of war, and not until then. 

I resigned my post in Louisiana in March, 1861, because of 
the public act on the part of the State in seizing the United 
States arsenal at Baton Rouge, and went to St. Louis, where I 
received lucrative employment, hoping that some change would 
yet avert the war. But it came, and I, and all of military edu- 
cation, had to choose. I repeat, that then, as now, I had as 
much love for the honest people of the South as any man liv- 
ing. Had they remained true to the country, I would have 
resisted, even with arms, any attack upon their rights — even 
their slave rights. But when, as a people, they tore down our 
flag, and spit upon it, and called us cowards, and dared us to 
the contest, then I took up arms to maintain the integrity of 
our country, and punish the man who challenged us to the con- 
flict. Is this not a true picture? Suppose the North had pa- 
tiently submitted, what would have been the verdict of his- 
tory and the world? Nothing else but that the North was 
craven and cowardly. Will you say the North is craven and 
cowardly now? 

Cruel and inhuman as this war has been, and may still con- 
tinue to be, it was forced upon us. We had no choice and we 
have no choice yet. We must go on. even to the end of time, 
even if it result in sinking a million of lives and desolating 
the whole land, leaving a desert behind. We must maintain 
the integrity of our country. And the day will come when 
the little grandchild you love so well, will bless us who fought, 
that the United States of America should not sink into infamy 
and worse than Mexican Monarchy, who care no more for you. 
or such as you, than they care for the Hottentots. I have nev- 
er under-rated the magnitude of this war, for I know the size 
of the South,. a ml the difficulty of operating in it. But, I also 



172 Personal Recollections ol Sherman. 

know the northern races have, ever since the war began, had 
more patience and perseverance than the southern races. And 
so it will be now, we will persevere until the end. All man- 
kind shall recognize in us a brave and stubborn race, not to 
be deterred by the magnitude of the danger. Only three 
years have passed, and that is but a minute in a nation's life, 
and see where we are. Where are the haughty planters of 
Louisiana, who compared our hard-working, intelligent whites 
of the North with their negroes? 

The defeats we have sustained have hardly made a pause 
in our course, and the vaunted braves of Tennessee, Mississip- 
pi, Louisiana, Missouri, etc., instead of walking rough-shod 
over the freemen of the North, are engaged in stealing horses 
and robbing poor old people for a living, while our armies now 
tread in every southern state, and your biggest armies in Vir- 
ginia and Georgia lie behind forts, and dare not. come out and 
fight us cowards of the North, who have come five hundred 
miles into their country to accept the challenge. 

But, my dear old friend, I have bored you too much. My 
handwriting is not plain, but you have time to study it out. 
and, as you can understand, 1 have a great deal of writing to 
do, and it most be done in a hurry. Think of what I have 
written. Talk it over with your neighbors, and ask your- 
selves if, in your trials and tribulations, you have suffered 
more from the Union soldiery than you would had you built 
your barn where the lightning was sure to burn or tear it 
down. Their course has provoked the punishment of an in- 
dignant God and Government. I care not a straw for niggers. 
The moment the master rebels, the negro is free, of course, for 
he is a slave only by law. and the law broken, he is free. I 
commanded in all Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama 
and Georgia. The paper I endorse will be of service to you. 

Love to Mrs. Martin. 

AY. T. SHERMAN, 

Major-General. 

It was on the 1st of September that I parted with the Army 
of the Tennessee. During my convalescence I visited General 
Grunt and that magnificent Army of the Potomac a1 City 
Point. As soon as able, I had orders to proceed to Vicksburg, 
and it was the intention while Sherman marched to Savannah 
that J should take a column from somewhere in that country 
and get to the rear of Mobile, and at St. Louis I received dis- 
patches from General Howard to repair to St. Louis, and there 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 173 

fell to the command of the Department of the Missouri, re- 
lieving General Rosecrans. The first order I received came 
from Stanton; it was a complimentary message from Grant, 
telling me I must send everything I could to help Thomas at 
Nashville, and I sent out of that department every organized 
force. "When the battle of Nashville was fought I had not an 
organized Union regiment in my department. 

I found General Sherman's family in St. Louis, and natur- 
ally, coming from an old commander like him, it was my pleas- 
ure to do anything and everything I could do for his family. 
Mrs. Sherman was trying to soften the hardships of war by 
getting people out of prison, and by relieving their necessities. 
There had been a great many arrests made. I found the pris- 
ons full and commenced emptying them, with the idea that it 
was a great deal cheaper to let these people talk than to feed 
them, but I got one or two severe reprimands for so doing. I 
know that Mrs. Sherman wrote to the General and told him 
what I was doing, and how kind I was to her, and how I car- 
ried out any requests she made, so far as it was possible for me 
to do so; and Sherman, still looking after my interests, as he 
had always done, wrote me a letter and said : 

You must not issue these orders and release these people 
simply because Mrs. Sherman requests you to do so. You must 
use your own judgment in this matter, and only issue orders 
where you know it is absolutely right. 

He said it in a kindly way. and he said a great many other 
things in his letter to me about my policy. He also said : 

I appreciate fully what you are doing, and why you do it. 
but, my dear General, you know you must still cling to a sol- 
dier's duty. 

While I was in command of that department, Lee and 
Johnston surrendered. I had received an order from Secre- 
tary Stanton instructing me to pay no attention to the Sher- 



174 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

man and Johnston parole. During this excitement a dinner 
was given at the Lindell Hotel, that brought together the loyal 
people of St. Louis, to which I was invited as commander of 
that department. I was astonished to hear Union people get 
up and denounce Sherman, criticising not only his acts but his 
motives. I listened as long as I could to these excitable speak- 
ers, and finally got up and stated that I had served near and 
under Sherman for two years, and while I knew nothing at all 
about the terms of surrender of Johnston, except the orders I 
had received from the Government, nevertheless^ I did not 
propose to stay at any dinner table, or any assembly of any kind 
where the loyalty of Sherman was questioned ; that whatever 
he had done, whether right or wrong, had been done by a 
soldier who had but one thing at heart — his duty to his coun- 
try and the destruction of the rebel army. It was not very long 
after this that my words reached Sherman. They brought 
back the kind of response that he made in such cases, and it 
was only a short time after this until Sherman himself ap- 
peared at his home in St. Louis. The war being virtually over, 
and being an old resident of that city, it was natural when he 
arrived that the people should seize upon him and pay him 
great attention, take him out to dinners, etc. A great many 
of his old friends were rebels, and I suppose they saw in his 
terms to Johnston an opportunity to break the force of the 
Union sentiment against them, for there was no place in the 
whole United States where the bitterness of the Union and 
rebel sentiment was so apparent as it was in the state of Mis- 
souri. It kept the state in dissensions during the entire war. 
The attentions of the sympathizers with the rebellion to Sher- 
man were very marked, so much so that some of the Union 
people called upon me and talked to me about it, and when 
Sherman came down to my headquarters, as he did daily, I 
spoke to him about it, and told him how they were talking 
and how they felt. He said: "They are going to give me a 



Personal K i- collectio ns of Sherman. 175 

dinner here in a few days, and General, don't you worry, J 
will settle that question there." 

He made a remarkable speech at that dinner. He said that 
since the war was over he did not feel that it was necessary 
for him to refuse any attentions, no matter from whom they 
came, but when it came to the question between loyal men and 
rebels everyone knew where his heart was, and everyone knew 
what his thoughts were; that it was only the clemency of the 
government that saved them from receiving their just dues long 
before this time. We never heard anything more in that 
country as to Sherman's position, and no one after that mis- 
understood him. At this banquet given in his honor at the 
Lindell Hotel, St. Louis, July 20. 1865, Sherman spoke as fol- 
lows: 

I feel tonight more than usually honored, for 1 am in the 
presence of many with whom I have been associated in years 
gone by — in business, in the social circle, and in public af- 
fairs. To receive the warm commendations I have just heard 
from the gentleman preceding me affords me the greatest 
pleasure, and I would that I were as gifted as my friend who 
has just taken his seat, so I might interest you — I would travel 
all over the world to find topics to suit the occasion. Gladly 
would I talk of Greece and Rome (but I fear they are gone by) 
or better still, point to the history of our own great country, 
that is teeming with recollections, recollections that to me are 
doubly, trebly dear, from associations ; to the history of the 
Spaniard on the lone river, or still more to old Colonel Bonne- 
ville, who is yet living among you, and whom I saw yesterday. 
Rut the world sweeps on, and I will not pause, for I see, by the 
paper before me, that you bring me before you as an actor in 
the scenes just past ; that you bring me as one of those men 
who have simply wafted our country past a dangerous abyss, 
and placed it on firm ground where it may sally forth again 
on a new career of prosperty and glory. (Cheers.) I admit 
that the past four years seem even to me a dream ; I can hard- 
ly realize the part I have taken, although step by step rises up 
when my memory retraces them, but yet it seems to me as a 
dream that men reared under our laws — men who were enjoy- 
ing prosperity, which they themselves admitted never was sur- 
passed, should rise up in rebellion against the land and Gov- 
ernment of Washington. It seems to me an impossibility; but 



170 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

it is now past, thank God. (Cheers.) We have a right, as citi- 
zens and historians, to cast our eyes and memory hack, and see 
if in the past events we can learn lessons, lessons of wisdom 
that will make us better men. better citizens and better patriots 
in the future; and if I can trace anything in the past calcu- 
lated to effect this object, I will account myself repaid. 

Here, in St. Louis, probably, began the great center move- 
ment which terminated the war; a battlefield such as never be- 
fore was seen, extending from ocean to ocean almost with the 
right wing and the left wing, and from the center here, I re- 
member one evening, up in the old Planters' House, sitting 
with General Halleck and General Cullman, and we were talk- 
ing about this and that and the other; a map was on the table, 
and I was explaining the position of the troops of the enemy 
in Kentucky. When I came to this state, General Halleek knew 
well the position here, and I remember well the question he 
asked me — the question of the school teacher to his child : 
"Sherman, here is the line, how will you break that line?" 
'Physically, by a perpendicular force." "Where is the per- 
pendicular?" "The line of the Tennessee." General Halleck 
is the author of that first beginning, and I give him credit for 
it with pleasure. (Cheers.) These were the grand strategic 
features of that movement, and it succeeded perfectly. Gen- 
eral Halleck 's plan went further — not to stop at his first line 
which run through Columbus, Bowling Green, crossing the 
river at Henry and Donelson, but to push on to the second 
line which run through Memphis and Charleston. But troubles 
intervened at Nashville, and delays followed; opposition to the 
last movement was made, and I myself was brought an actor 
on the scene. I remember our ascent on the Tennessee river; 
I have seen tonight captains of steamboats who first went with 
us there ; storms came and we did not reach the point desired. 
At that time General C. F. Smith was in command; he was a 
man indeed. All the old officers remember him as a gallant and 
elegant officer and had he lived, probably some of us younger 
fellows would not have attained our present positions. But 
that is now past. We followed the line — the second line — and 
then came the landing of forces at Pittsburg Landing. Wheth- 
er it was a mistake in landing them on the west instead of the 
east bank, it is not necessary now to discuss. I think it was 
not a mistake ; there was gathered the first great army of the 
West — commencing with only twelve thousand, then twenty, 
then thirty thousand, and we had about thirty-eight thousand 
in that battle, and all I claim for that is that it was a contest 
for manhood ; there was no strategy. Grant was there, and 
others of us. all young and unknown men at that time, but 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. r 



our enemy was old, and Sidney Johnston, whom all the officers 
remember as a power among the old officers, high above Grant, 
myself or anybody else, led the enemy on that battlefield, and 
I almost wonder how we conquered. But as I remarked, it was 
a contest for manhood — man to man — soldier to soldier. We 
fought and we held our grounds and therefore accounted our- 
selves victorious. (Cheers.) From that time forward, we 
had with us the prestige ; that battle was worth millions and 
millions to us by reason of the fact of the courage displayed 
by the brave soldiers on that occasion, and from that time to 
this, I never heard of the first want of courage on the part of 
our northern soldiers. (Cheers.) It then became a grand 
game of war ; armies were accounted equal, and skill and 
generalship came into play. We gained there by the move- 
ment on Corinth which Halleck designed here ; there his com- 
mand ceased, and a new shuffle of the cards of war was made. 
Halleck w r ent to the east and Grant to the West, but summer 
overtook us with the heat, and we could not march. Northern 
Mississippi was dry as ashes; it was impossible for men to live 
and march from stream to stream, and to follow the roads that 
lie between these, men would have parched with thirst; been 
overcome by heat. Therefore we delayed until fall, and late 
that fall I met Grant by appointment at Columbus ; there again 
we went over the map, and the next thing was to break the 
line of the Tallahatchie. Many of you here remember that 
movement. You citizens do not understand it at all, for I 
have never yet seen a newspaper account of it that approxi- 
mates the truth. (Laughter.) Pemberton commanded the 
army of the Confederacy in our front. We had superior num- 
bers, our men were scattered, and we first concentrated on 
Tallahatchie, below Holly Springs. Grant moved direct on 
Pemberton, while I moved from Memphis, and struck directly 
into Granada, and the first thing Pemberton knew, the depot 
of his supplies was almost in the grasp of a small cavalry force, 
and he fell into confusion, and gave us the Tallahatchie with- 
out a battle. But with some people an object gained without 
a battle is nothing. In Avar we gain success by any and every 
means ; it is not fighting alone. Bulls do that, and bears, and 
all beasts, but men attain objects by intellect, and the intro- 
duction of physical power, moved upon salient points. And 
so we gained the Tallahatchie, and although hardly a gun was 
fired, yet we gained a battle equal in its results to any other 
battle' on earth. (Cheers.) It gave us uninterrupted posses- 
sion of Northern Mississippi and undisputed possession of the 
resources of that country; and that country has been in our 
possession ever since, in a military sense. 



178 Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 

Then came the great campaign down your river, of which 
you and I and all of us were more deeply interested than in any 
other that can be developed on this continent. The possession 
of the Mississippi river is the possession of America, (cheers) 
and 1 say that had the Southern Confederacy — (call it by what 
name you may) — had that power represented by the Southern 
Confederacy, held with a grip sufficiently strong the lower part 
of the Mississippi River, we would have been a subjugated 
people, and they would have dictated to us if we had given up 
the possession of the lower Mississippi. It was vital to us, 
and we fought for it, and won it. We determined to have it, 
but we could not go down with our frail boats past the batteries 
of Vicksburg. It was a physical impossibility, therefore what 
was to be done? After the Tallahatchie line was carried, 
Vicksburg was the next point. I went with a small and hastily 
collected force and repeatedly endeavored to make a lodg- 
ment on the bluffs between Vicksburg and Hain's Bluff, while 
General Grant moved with his main army so as to place him- 
self on the high plateau behind Vicksburg, but "man proposes 
and God disposes," and we failed on that occasion. I then 
gathered my hastily collected force and went down further, 
and then, for the first time I took General Blair and his Brigade 
under my command. On the very day I had agreed to be there 
I was there, and we swung our flanks around, and the present 
Governor of Missouri fell a prisoner to the enemy on that day. 
We failed. I waited anxiously for a co-operating force inland 
and below us, but they did not come, and after I had made the 
assault I learned that the depot at Holly Springs had been 
broken up, and that General Grant had sent me word not to 
attempt it. But it was too late. Nevertheless, although we 
were to carry it at first, there were other things to be done. 
The war covered such a vast area there was plenty to do. I 
thought of that affair at Arkansas Post, although others claim 
it : and they may have it if they want it. We cleaned them 
out there and General Grant then brought his whole army to 
Vicksburg, and you, in St. Louis, remember well that long 
Avinter — how we were on the levee, with the water rising and 
drowning us like muskrats ; how we were seeking channels 
through Deer Creek and Yazoo Pass, and how we finally cut 
a canal across the peninsulas, in front of Vicksburg. But at 
that time the true movement was the original movement, and 
everything approximating to it came nearer the truth. But 
we could not make a retrograde movement. Why? Because 
your people of the North were too noisy. We could not take 
a step backwards, and for that reason Ave were forced to run 
the batteries of Vicksburg. It is said I protested against it 
— it is folly. 1 never protested in my life — never. fLaughter.) 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 179 



On the contrary, General Grant rested on me probably more 
responsibility even than any other commander under him, for 
he wrote me, "I want you to move upon Hains' Bluff, to enable 
me to pass to the next fort below— Grand Gulf. I hate to ask 
you because the fervor of the North will accuse you of being 
rebellious again." (Laughter.) I love Grant for his kindness. 
I did make the feint on Hains ' Bluff and by that means Grant 
ran the blockade easily to Grand Gulf, and made lodgment 
down there and got his army upon the high plateau in the rear 
of Vicksburg, while you people here were beguiled into the 
belief that Sherman was again repulsed. But we did not re- 
pose confidence in everybody. Then followed the movement on 
Jackson, and the Fourth of July placed us in possession of that 
great stronghold, Vicksburg, and then, as Mr. Lincoln said, 
"The Mississippi went unvexed to the sea." 

From that day to this, this war has been virtually and 
properly settled. It was a certainty, then. They would have 
said, "We give up," but Davis would not ratify it, and he had 
them under good discipline, and therefore it was necessary to 
fight again. Then came the affair of Chickamauga. The Army 
of the Mississippi, lying along its banks, were called into a new 
field of action, and so one morning early I got orders to go to 
Chattanooga. I did not know where it was hardly. (Laugh- 
ter.) I did not know the road to go there. But I found it, 
and got there in time (laughter and cheers), and although 
my men were shoeless and the cold bitter frosts of winter were 
upon us, still I must go to Knoxville, 130 miles further, to 
relieve Burnside. That march we made (A Voice — and you 
got there in time). Then winter forced us to lie quiet. Dur- 
ing the winter I took a little exercise down the river, but that 
is of no account. 

But as spring came on, General Grant and I met at Nash- 
ville and talked the matter over, and we agreed that I should 
take all the armies that I could make out of the Western arm- 
ies and fight Joe Johnston, go where he might, while he took 
the more ungracious task — the command of the old Army of 
the Potomac. (Laughter.) We agreed upon the time at which 
we should be ready, and we were ready almost at the same 
time, and moved upon the common enemy nearly simultan- 
eously, although a thousand miles apart. The history of that 
is so well known that I need not tell it. Grant struggled at 
Petersburg and I at Atlanta, and for a time things looked dark, 
and as though at last we had come to a dead standstill. But 
it was not so bad as that. As long as there is a will there is a 
way, and there was a will there, and that will pointed towards 
Jonesboro, and we took Atlanta. (Loud cheers.) You cannot 
attain great success in war without great risks. I admit we 



180 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

violated many of the old established rules of war by cutting 
loose from our base and exposing 60.000 lives. But when a 
thing has got to be done it has got to be done. (Laughter and 
cheers. ) I had faith in the army I commanded; that faith 
was well founded. But there was the old story exemplified — 
we had the elephant and it troubled us to know what to do 
with that elephant, and again we had to put our wits together 
and we concluded to kill the elephant. (Laughter.) We did 
not like to do it. I come now to a piece of military history 
which has been more discussed than any other. I contended 
at first, when we took Vicksburg, that we had gained a point 
which the Southern Confederacy as belligerents, and so recog- 
nized by ourselves and the world — were bound to regard — that 
when we took Vicksburg, by all the rules of civilized warfare, 
they should have surrendered, and allowed us to restore Fed- 
eral power in the land. But they did not. I claim also that 
when we took Atlanta, that they were bound by every rule of 
civilized warfare to surrender their cause. It was then hope- 
less, and it was clear to me as daylight that they were bound to 
surrender and return to civil life. But they continued the war. 
and then I had a right, under the rules of civilized warfare, to 
commence a system that would make them feel the power of 
the Government, and cause them to succumb to our national 
authority. (Cheers.) I have again and again proffered kind- 
ness towards the people of the South, and I have manifested 
it on thousands of occasions. I lived among them and re- 
ceived generous hospitality; but at the same time, if their 
minds are not balanced so as to reason aright, we have the 
right to apply the rod. (Cheers.) So we destroyed Atlanta, 
and all that could be used against us there will have to be re- 
built. The question then arose in my mind, how to apply the 
power thus entrusted by my Government so as to produce the 
result — the end of the war — which was all we desired: for war 
is only .justifiable among civilized nations to produce peace. 
There is no other legitimate rule — except to produce peace. 
That is the object of Avar, and it is so universally acknowl- 
edged. Therefore, I had to go through Georgia, and let them 
see what war meant. I had the right to destroy their com- 
munications, which I did. I made them feel the consequences 
of their war, so they will never again invite an invading army. 
Savannah fell as a matter of course, and once in our power, 
the question again arose, "what next."' All asked, "What 
next?" I never received any orders from anybody. I had 
nothing to look to but my own brain. 1 asked advice again and 
again but I got mighty little, 1 can tell you, except from Grant 
who is always generous and fair. (Cheers.) No advice, no 



_J PERSOXAL BecOEEECTIQXS OF ShER VLVX. LSI 

word at Savannah, save 'Sir. Lincoln's, "what next"?" T 
told him I would tell him after awhile. 

Then came that last movement which I do contend involved 
more labor and more risk than anything else which I have 
done, or ever expect to do again. I could take Charleston with- 
out going there. First, by segregating it from the rest of the 
country so that it could not live. Man must have something 
to live upon. He must go where there is something to eat. 
Therefore, I concluded to break up the railroad, so the peo- 
ple had to get out of Charleston or perish. Then the next 
thing was to place the army in Columbia, which I tell you is 
more of a place in the South than you are aware of. Years 
ago I thought Columbia would be the scene of the great and 
final struggle of the war. I thought our western army would 
go eastward and our eastern army southward to Columbia, and 
that we would fight it out there. The people there regarded 
it as a place of security. They sent their treasures there and 
their wines and liquors, which, my friend Blair remembers so 
well. (Laughter and cheers.) But if you place an army where 
the enemy say you cannot, you gain an object. All military 
readers will understand the principle. And therefore, when 
I could place my army in Columbia, I fought a battle — reaped 
the fruits of a victory — bloodless, but still produced military 
results. The next question was to place my army still further, 
where I would be in communication with the old Army of the 
Potomac — where we could destroy the life of the Confederate 
armies — for it seemed at one time as though they were deter- 
mine! to fight to the "last ditch." 

So we went to Goldsboro, and then I hastened to see Grant, 
and Mr. Lincoln, for the last time. We talked the matter 
over, and agreed perfectly. Grant was moving then. 1 had 
been fifty odd days marching on light rations. My men were 
shoeless and without pants, and needed clothing and rest. I 
hurried back to Goldsboro and dispatched everything with as 
great rapidity as I could, and on the very day T appointed, I 
started in pursuit of Johnston, let him be where he might. 
Understand now. that in this vast campaign we had no objec- 
tive point on the map, all we had to do was to pursue the Con- 
federate armies wherever they might go and destroy them 
wherever we could catch them. The great difficulty was to 
bring them to bay. You can chase and ehase a hare until the 
end of time, but unless you bring him to bay you can't catch 
him. Grant was enabled to bring Lee to bay by means of 
Sheridan's Cavalry. I did not have sufficient cavalry; if I 
had, I might have brought Johnston to bay ; but with my then 
force I could not, because my cavalry was inferior to his num- 
bers. Therefore, when Lee surrendered., Johnston saw, as 



182 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

clearly as I had seen for months before, that his cause was 
gone. 

I had been thinking of it for months; therefore, when he 
met me and announced the fact that he was "gone up," I was 
prepared to receive it. (Laughter.) It was exactly like a fa- 
miliar song. It seemed to the North a new thing. We had 
expected it, and when they gave up, we supposed there was 
an end of it. "How did they give up?" was the question. 
"Gave up. That was all. No use fighting any longer." "On 
Avhat terms did they give up?" "On the same terms that Lee 
gave up." I have described sufficiently clear in my official 
reports all the conversation that took place, and all I will say 
is that the North seemed to be taken unawares, although every 
newspaper in the land and every ■ county court orator had 
preached about peace for the last four years, yet when it came 
they did not recognize it. All I claim is, that I was prepared 
for it from the start. The moment Johnston spoke to me I 
saw peace at once, and I was honest enough to say so, but the 
world was startled by it. 

"Sherman had turned traitor, and Jeff Davis had bought 
him up with Confederate gold." I rather think he would have 
found it a pretty hard job to have bought me up. (Cheers.) 
Poor Davis. I know he never had enough gold to buy me, al- 
though I won't mention my price. (Laughter and cheers.) 
But all that is now past, and I am satisfied in my heart that 
we have peace. I am satisfied by the combined armies and 
navies, and the citizens of the North, and ,many of the South, 
that now we have peace in the land, and what is the conse- 
quence? It is simply one stage in our history. We have 
had wars heretofore. Did we cut the throats of our enemies? 
Certainly not ; like sensible men, when the war was over, we 
went to work to recover what we had lost by the war, and 
entered on a new stage. Now, if any man will show me how 
Arkansas may be improved, and Louisiana and Georgia, I will 
sit down and discuss it with great fairness. And any improve- 
ment in Georgia, in the cultivation of her rice fields, or other 
branches of industry will bring in more revenue. As a part 
of the United States she will assist in paying our debt. It 
will add to the wealth of the nation ; and therefore, anything 
that improves Georgia will improve the United States of Amer- 
ica. If a man commits a crime, it is necessary he should be 
turned over to the sheriff and the court. There they are. But 
so far as the future is concerned, manifestly our duty should 
be to put every man, woman and child capable of earning a 
living, or of taking any part in the body politic, to work again 
where they may earn an honest living and contribute to the 
National wealth. Anything looking to that end, I certainly 



Personal Eecollections of Shekman. 183 

think every American citizen can well do, without being con- 
sidered as conniving at crime, for I say criminals can never 
be pardoned by military men. Murder is murder and will be 
till the end of time; arson the same, thieving the same. We 
cannot deal with these ; we simply deal with men in arms 
that defy the civil authority ; when they cease to do this, our 
task is done, and we retire whence we came. That is the law 
of England, France and Austria, and our own country, ever 
since we had one, and will be till the end of time. As to the 
usurpations of the civil power by the military, there may be 
at times cases occur in the history of wars when the passions 
and feelings of man may be aroused so as to over-ride civil 
authority, but in time of peace it is impossible that any Amer- 
ican soldier, any American officer, any educated officer, should 
wish to over-ride the civil power ; we just exercise the military 
power. We look upon the civil power as something below us. 
We do not wish to detract from its merits. On the contrary, 
quite the reverse. But it is a different sphere of action — one 
in which we take more pleasure — and certainly I do not wish to 
over-ride the sheriffs and common courts. Therefore, my 
friends, now that the war is over, let us all go to work and do 
what seems most honest and just to restore our country to its 
former prosperity —TO ITS PHYSICAL PROSPERITY. As 
to its political prosperity, I know nothing of it, and care far 
less about it. (Prolonged cheering.) 

During the year 1865 and the spring of 1866 it fell to my 
lot to make the Indian campaign over the plains, and to kill 
a few Indians, and among them a few squaws and children — 
when there was a general outcry raised all over the United 
States, and through the peace commissioners the whole In- 
dian policy was changed from war to treaties of peace ; and, 
being desirous of retiring from the army, Sherman knowing 
all my plans, I wrote him in April, 1866, a personal letter ask- 
ing for leave of absence, my resignation not having been ac- 
cepted. I have no copy of my letter to him, but he under- 
stood the matter fully, for we had discussed it together, and 
in answer to that letter I received the following: 

Headquarters, Military Division of the Mississippi. 
Major-General Dodge. 

Dear General: — I have your letter of April 27th, and I 
readily consent to what you ask. I think General Pope should 



184 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

be at Leavenworth before you leave, and I expected he would 
be at Leavenworth by May 1st, but he is not yet come. As 
soon as he reaches Leavenworth or St. Louis even, I consent 
to your going to Omaha to begin what, I trust, will be the 
real beginning of the great road. I start tomorrow for Riley, 
whence I will cross over to Kearney by land, and thence come 
in to Omaha, where I hope to meet you. I will send your let- 
ter this morning to Pope's office and endorse my request that 
a telegraph message be sent to General Pope to the effect that 
he is wanted at Leavenworth. Hoping to meet you soon, I am, 

Truly, 

W. T. SHERMAN, M. G. 

On receipt of this letter I proceeded to Omaha, Nebraska, 
and on May 6th, 1866, took charge of the survey and construc- 
tion of the Union Pacific railroad. 

General Sherman in his Memoirs states that in the year 
1849 he was sent by General Smith up to Sacramento City to 
instruct Lieutenants Warner and Williamson, of the Engineers, 
to push their surveys of the Sierra Nevada mountains, for the 
purpose of ascertaining the possibility of passing that range by 
railroad, a subject that then elicited universal interest. It was 
generally assumed that such a road could not be made along 
any of the immigrant roads then in use, and Warner's orders 
were to look further north — up the Feather River, or some 
of its tributaries. Warner was engaged in this survey dur- 
ing the summer and fall of 1849, and had explored to the 
very end of Goose Lake, the source of Feather River, when this 
officer's career was terminated by death in battle with the 
Indians. General Sherman was too modest to add, as was 
the fact, that those instructions were sent at his own sug- 
gestion; that that was the first exploring party ever sent into 
the field for the special purpose of ascertaining the feasibility 
of constructing a railway on a portion of the line of the trans- 
continental routes, and that they preceded by at least four 
years the act of Congress making appropriations "for ex- 
plorations and surveys for a railroad route from the Missis- 
sippi River to the Pacific Ocean." 



Personal Recollections of S herman. 185 

On January 6, 1859, General Sherman addressed a letter 
to Hon. John Sherman, M. C, and made public through the 
"National Intelligence." It is one of the most remarkable 
and instructive short papers to be found in tbe literature of 
trans-continental railway construction. He gave many 
weighty reasons why a railway to the Pacific should be built, 
but thought it could not be done unless done by the nation. 
"It is a work of giants," he sententiously declares, "and 
Uncle Sam is the only giant I know who can grapple the sub- 
ject." That paper alone, in the light of later events, would 
stamp its author as a far-seeing statesman and an enlightened 
engineer. He said: 

It so happens that for the past ten years the Sierra Ne- 
vada has been crossed at every possible point by miners in 
search of gold, by emigrants going and coming, and by skilful 
and scientific men. I, myself, have been along a great part of 
that range, and have no hesitation in saying that there are no 
passes by which a railway, to be traveled by the most power- 
ful locomotion now in use, can be carried through the Sierra 
Nevada, unless at the extreme head of the Sacramento, near 
the town of Shasta or Fort Reading, or at the extreme head of 
the San Joaquin, near the Tajon. 

And now I wish to say that if there are any two men in 
the United States who were entitled to the credit of enabling 
us to construct the Union Pacific railway, outside of those who 
put their money in it, and made it a success, those two men 
were Generals U. S. Grant and W. T. Sherman. I undertake 
to say that had it not been for the personal, active and always 
liberal co-operation of the armies under their direction, the 
people who built that road and faced its difficulties would have 
somewhere been stopped. 

During all the time of construction of the Union Pacific, 
either Grant or Sherman gave orders that anything General 
Dodge asked for should be given to him, "because he knows 
under the regulations what he is entitled to." I made some 
requests upon the military commanders that were unusual, 



186 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

and I said to the commanders: "I want you to obey this, and 
I will protect you." 

When the official reports of what had been done reached 
Sherman, he wrote me a kindly letter, but he said to me: 

Don't forget not only what your duties are to the Union 
Pacific, but also what your conscience tells you is right towards 
the United States in such circumstances, and what we can 
approve. 

Of course, it was a nice, quiet, gentle reminder that they 
trusted me, and I had gone a little beyond what they consid- 
ered was fair to their trust. 

General Sherman came up to look at the first section of 
the road examined after I took charge of the line. If you go 
back and read the records you will see he was present. Major 
Bent, a gentleman who was at one time at the head of one of 
the greatest industries in this country, was assigned to the 
duty of taking care of the people who examined the road. 
General Sherman said to him: "Every time they build a sec- 
tion here I will be on hand to look at it, and see that it is 
properly built." 

Bent wagered with General Sherman a basket of cham- 
pagne that he would not do it. Sherman's headquarters were 
in St. Louis, and we we're building and examining about thirty 
miles of road a month. This would have brought him up to 
examine the road about once every month, and after we built 
about one hundred miles of road he wrote me and said: "I 
am not going to come up there any longer; I am ready to pay 
my bet." 

One evening at the Union League Club, only a short time 
before he died, he said to me : "I wish, Dodge, that you would 
get Bent down to New York and T will pay that basket of 
champagne that I owe him." 

As the road progressed, there was hardly a mile of it that 
was not built under the protection of the United States forces. 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 187 

Every engineer that made its surveys had to be protected 
against the Indians. The men, when they started to work in 
the morning, stacked their muskets by their work, ready to 
fall in at any moment in case they were attacked by Indians, 
and I have often known them to fall in and defend their 
camp. 

Every year while we were building this road Sherman went 
over it, and I reported to him just as regularly as I did to my 
superior officers, telling him what I was doing and asking ad- 
vice. He saw through the papers that there was a question 
between myself as chief engineer and Mr. T. C. Durant, the 
chief contractor, as to the lines, and that Mr. Durant had 
declared against the lines that the engineers of the road had 
said were the true lines in a commercial and engineering point 
of view, and that if the lines were not sustained I would have 
to resign. 

I was in Utah at the time, and I received a dispatch from 
Durant, dated at Laramie, to return there immediately to meet 
Generals Grant and Sherman. I immediately took the stage 
and started for Laramie. When Durant received my abso- 
lute refusal to accept the lines they had adopted, he wired to 
Sherman, and Sherman to Grant, and both came to Laramie, 
thousands of miles, showing their interest in the subject. They 
protested against Durant 's action, and when I stepped off the 
stage Durant said to me: "General, I want you to withdraw 
your dispatch; the lines you want you may have. I am con- 
vinced that you are right." 

There I met Grant and Sherman, and went over with them 
the whole possibilities of the Union Pacific line, and told them, 
in my opinion, that during the year 1869, with no untoward 
events, we would have the connection. They discussed its 
probabilities, and said then and there to me : "If that is your 
plan. General, whatever you want you may have." 



188 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

And they so instructed the commander of that department, 
and what I asked for I received. 

General Grant and General Sherman took very strong 
grounds with Durant and Dillon, telling them frankly that the 
Government would not stand for any change in my lines, and 
that they should insist upon my remaining upon the road. 1 
had stated frankly to General Grant and General Sherman, to 
Dillon and Durant, that I would not submit to such inter- 
ference as had been made; that it was not for the benefit of 
the road, but simply for the purpose of driving me off the road. 
They knew they could not have their way while I was on the 
road, and watched my every movement. It resulted in Durant 
and Dillon withdrawing all orders for change of location, and 
Generals Grant and Sherman exacted an agreement from me 
that I would not resign, but stay with the road until it was 
finished. 

This meeting of the largest number of distinguished officers 
that had met since the Civil War, was a very noted event. The 
officers present were : General U. S. Grant, Lieutenant-Gen- 
eral W. T. Sherman, Major-General Phillip Sheridan, Major- 
General W. C. Harney, Major-General John G. Gibbon, Major- 
General Grenville M. Dodge (chief engineer U. P. P. R.), Bri- 
gadier-General F. Dent, Brigadier-General Adam Slemmer, 
Brigadier-General Joseph C. Potter, Brigadier-General Louis 
C. Hunt, Brigadier-General August Kautz. A local photogra- 
pher took a picture of the groups which included T. C. Durant, 
vice president Union Pacific railroad, Sidney Dillon, Mrs. Gib- 
bon and Mrs. Potter, and three local officers of the Post, also 
U. S. Grant, Jr., son of General Grant. 

I forgot all about this picture until in 1892, when on a trip 
to Oregon, looking over the Union Pacific interests, I visited 
General Gibbon at Ft. Vancouver and he showed me a small 
copy of it. This I obtained from him and had it enlarged, and 
it has been sought for by a great many persons. It was util- 



Personal Recollections of Sjii:i;.max. 189 

ized by the Union Pacific Eailway. who had an immense num- 
ber of copies made for an advertisement. There is a copy of 
it in my book. "How We Built the Union Pacific Railway." 
In later years the photograph has been sought by many li- 
braries, museums, and by many officers of the army. 

Generals Sherman, Harney, Kautz, Slemmer and Hunt were 
going as a peace commission to treat with the Sioux. General 
Sherman wanted to know my reasons for not making an agre*> 
ment with the Sioux in 1866, allowing them to come down to 
the North Fork of the Platte. I told him that my troops, in 
the expedition to Powder Hirer in 1865. had discovered gold 
through the Black Hills, through the hunting grounds of the 
Ogalalla and Brule Sioux, and that I knew as soon as I made 
a treaty with the Indians that Chaffee in Colorado and Fair 
and others in California were preparing to send men in there. 
I had with me in that campaign, part of a Colorado regiment 
and part of the California regiment, many of them expert min- 
ers, and they panned every stream we crossed and had dis- 
covered gold. They were afraid to go in there because my 
agreement with the Indians in 1866 was that it would be im- 
possible for me to keep the whites out of there, and therefore, 
I would not sign any treaty of peace which would bring them 
down to the North Platte. My idea was to hold them north of 
the Belle Fourehe Fork of the Cheyenne, and if they behaved 
themselves, I would endeavor to keep the miners from going 
into that country : if they went in violation of my orders, I 
gave the Indians permission to keep them out, and this, I 
know, kept the miners out of that country. The Indians were 
not willing to give up this ground under any circumstances, 
as it was their best hunting ground. General Sherman and his 
commission, under the orders of the President, made the agree- 
ment with them to come to the North Fork of the Platte, tak- 
ing in all the Black Hills north of Ft. Laramie. This treaty 
had hardly been ratified when the Colorado and California 



190 Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 



miners poured in there and discovered the Homestake mine, 
which has been a great producer. The Government made no 
effort to keep the Indians out of this country and carry out 
the terms of their treaty. Sitting Bull, who was the chief of 
the tribe of Indians who occupied these hills, made protest to 
the Government, demanding that they should have their treaty 
carried out; but the Government paid no attention to it; then 
Sitting Bull took the matter into his own hands, which brought 
on the war between the Indians and the Government in 1876. 
in which occurred the Custer massacre. The Indians are not 
to blame for this, for they were only maintaining their rights, 
and it was the fault of the Government in agreeing to the 
treaty and then not living up to it. There is no escaping this 
fact, and Custer and his regiment were sacrificed because the 
Government of the United States did not live up to its agree- 
ment and do its duty towards these Indians. 

On July 29th, 1868, I arrived at Omaha and took General 
Grant, Sherman and Sheridan to my residence in Council 
Bluffs. As General Grant had been nominated for the Presi- 
dency, and no doubt would be elected, I took great pains on 
this trip to post him thoroughly about everything connected 
with the Union Pacific railway, and especially as to the inter- 
ference that there had been west of the Missouri since we com- 
menced building it. General Sherman, who had been watch- 
ing this also, took an active part in the conversation. They 
were greatly interested in having the road completed, and my 
assurances of our completing the road within a year from 
the time we commenced work, April 1st, which would probably 
take us into May, seemed to greatly impress them. General 
Sherman said it was too big a job, he thought, for us to com- 
plete in the time I said, but as I had made good every state- 
ment I had made so far, he would give up his judgment for 
mine. While General Grant seemed to have full faith that we 
would be able to do it, he assured me that as far as he was con- 



Personal Kecqllectiqns of Sherman. 191 

cerned, we would have his support, and on his return to Wash- 
ington he would make known to the Government the condi- 
tions as he found them. I opened up with the question, that 
was then being started, about the Central Pacific overlapping 
the lines— they claimed to build to Echo and we to Humboldt 
Wells, so that he was fully posted in this matter. I showed 
him that the Central Pacific was trying to enforce the location 
of their lines over a road which we had graded, and which 
would have a track upon it long before they could reach 
Ogden. General Sherman wrote me often during the construc- 
tion, showing his grasp of the whole problem. The following 
is his first letter: 

St. Louis, Jan. 5, 1867. 

My Dear General Dodge : At New Orleans I received your 
welcome letter from New York, and I assure you, on its faith, 
I boasted not a little of the vast energy of our countrymen; 
303 miles of railroad finished in one year is a feat that may 
well be boasted of. I assure you of my hearty congratula- 
tions, and that greater problem of the railroad seems to be 
solving itself very fast. 

You are exactly right in making your location independ- 
ent of local influence. When I was at Denver and saw the 
lay of the land, I felt certain that you would locate north of 
that city, and said so, incidentally, but some fellow got hold 
of it and pitched into me. As it was none of my business, I 
held my tongue and counsel, but still it is not enough to de- 
flect from its course the Great National Highway. I also learn 
with pleasure that your eastern connection is done within 
twenty-two' miles, and I have ordered all troops and stores for 
the Department of the Platte to go via Chicago, Clinton and 
Omaha. 

The loss of Col. Fetterman's command up at Phil Kear- 
ney may disturb your people ; but don 't let it, for we shall 
persevere and push that road to Virginia City, and it will 
divert the attention of the hostile Sioux from your road. The 
point where you cross the North Platte and Fort Laramie will 
become great military points, and you should make arrange- 
ments for cars to land our troops and stores there. I take 
it for granted that you get along well with Cooke, and his 
quartermaster, Myers. 

I would like to know how far this side of old Camp Wahl- 
bach you propose to leave the Lodge Pole. It looks to me as 



192 Persoxal Recollections of Sherman. 

if you could take the divide some ten miles this side, and get 
up some 700 or 800 feet before you reach the Black Hills. I 
remember well the difficulty in California. Our first locations 
clung- to the valleys for some thirty miles out of Sacramento, 
and then it was too late to rise to the mountains. Whereas, 
now. the road begins to rise at once on leaving Sacramento, so 
that they get up near two thousand feet before they strike the 
mountains. I suppose your location descends into the Laramie 
plains not far from Willow Springs Station, twelve miles 
southeast of the new Fort Stevens (John Buford). 

The coming year, for better or worse, is to be an important 
one to our country, and if you could, by superhuman effort, 
reach the foot of the mountains near Wahlbach, it would be a 
great achievement. That will be the military point for the 
road. North and south from that point the roads are good by 
reason of the nearness of the wood, the abundant grass and 
water, and valleys that afford good roadways for traveling. I 
will do my utmost that General Cooke will have force enough 
to cover your parties absolutely, which will be easy from the 
forks of the Platte westward. 

T came up from New Orleans by rail, saw our old stamping 
grounds, Jackson, Miss. ; Canton, Grenada, Grand Junction 
and Jackson, Tenn. I feared somebody would offend me, but 
such Avas not the case. I saw any quantity of old rebels who 
were as polite as possible. 

Wishing the great enterprise as much success in 1867 as in 
1866, I am, as ever, your friend, 

W. T. SHERMAN. 

On January 14th, 1867, I wrote this letter to General Sher- 
man, giving my plans for that year's construction: 

Council Bluffs, Jan. 11th, 1867. 
Lieut. Gen. W. T. Sherman. 

Dear General : Yours of the 5th inst. came duly to hand. I 
enclose a rough map of located line from North Platte City ; 
crossing of North Platte River to Ft. Sanders; crossing of Lar- 
amie River, for your information. It will give you the line 
better than I could describe it. 

We run up Lodge Pole Creek 105 miles, leaving it 55 
miles east of Camp Wahlbach and not far from where the mid- 
dle fork Laramie and Denver wagon road crosses that stream. 
You put last year a lot of friendly Indians in camp on this 
road, near the crossing of Horse Creek. From point where 
we leave Lodge Pole it is 31 miles almost due west to the R. R. 
crossing of Crow Creek, and we gain some 700 feet elevation 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 193 

in this distance. At Crow Creek Crossing we commence as- 
cending the mountains, and we consider this point the eastern 
base of the "Rocky Mountains." It is on a meridian nearly 
20 miles east of Camp Wahlbach, or LaPorte, hence the ad- 
vantage. From Crow Creek Crossing to Ft. Sanders is 59 
miles. "We get into Laramie Plains in sight of Willow Spring 
Stage Station. 

I note what you say about military points. At North 
Platte City is the end of our first 300-mile division. We shall 
put up extensive warehouses, round-houses, 20 stalls, machine 
shops, and have already built a large hotel to accommodate 
travel, etc., and the place is rapidly building up. I anticipate 
no difficulty in accommodating here all troops or business that 
the Government may send over to us. North Platte is also the 
base from which contractors Operate next season. The rail- 
road from Omaha to that point goes into the hands of company 
proper January 1st, to be operated by them. We are piling 
up there large quantities of ties, iron and all material for this 
year's work. In May we mean to be at Sedgwick, 80 miles 
from the end of the track, 40 miles of which is graded, when 
we can land your troops and stores if desired by 1st of Sep- 
tember at Crow Creek Crossing, and in December fit Ft. 
Sanders. 

Either at point where we leave Lodge Pole or at Crow 
Creek Crossing will be the end of our next division, and where 
we shall change machinery for mountain runs. We shall, no 
doubt, at this point build up quite a place, and a Denver 
branch will connect at or near one of these points — I am un- 
ble to say which just now, but think Crow Creek will be the 
place ; from either point Ft. Laramie can be reached — fiO or 
70 miles over an excellent wagon road — either by road along 
east base of Black Hills, which you have traveled, or by 
middle Laramie road, equally as good, and I think better. It 
may be you will finally determine to make your depots for 
Laramie and Fort North at Fort Sanders, as it is nearer tim- 
ber, coal, etc., than the east base of the mountains, and is not 
so much farther from Fort Laramie. However, during the sea- 
son you will find, no doubt, use for delivery of goods, troops, 
etc., to North Platte, then Fnrt Sedgwick, then 40 miles up 
Lodge Pole, where first Laramie road crosses to Mud Springs; 
then point where we leave Lodge Pole, and then Crow Creek. 
By that time you can determine the best point to settle down 
on. We are doing all in power of man in getting out ties, push- 
ing forward materials, etc., so that we can accomplish our 
plan of reaching Laramie in 1867. If we do not have to con- 
tend with financial reverses in the country, I predict we will 
reach the objective point and more. I have my fears for the 



194 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

future; financial matters generally do not look promising; 
if country steers clear of that breaker, we are all right. 

I wrote you about General Cooke. We get along first rate 
with all the military, and if any new commander comes, I am 
ready and shall be glad to give him all information or aid in 
my power, and will do the very best to help him along in tak- 
ing care of the Indian troubles, overland routes, etc. 

We want to cover our work from Alkali to Laramie Eiver 
as soon as frost leaves the ground, say in March. Contrac- 
tors are already pushing west, getting ready. I hope you will 
have troops to give us ample protection ; we are going to be 
short of labor, and any lack of military protection, when In- 
dians are at war, would render it almost impossible to keep 
men on the line. What we want is the laborers to have 
confidence. I believe the moment you get into Indian country 
with troops for campaign, Indians will leave Platte route the 
same as they did in '65. But that will not fully relieve me, be- 
cause what you and I know, is going to be hard to make a lot of 
Irishmen believe. They want to see occasionally a soldier to 
give them confidence, and that is all we need to' get labor on the 
line. I have made an official application to the department 
commander for what I consider necessary. 

General Myers is an able Quartermaster, understands his 
business and does it. We get along well with the staff depart- 
ment and help each other. I said to you in my letter about 
General Cooke that you would need 5,000 effective men north 
of South Platte and east of mountains. To make it plainer, 
I think in Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Dakota, Montana, 
west of the Missouri River, you will need 10,000, and I hope 
the Government will not do by you as they did by me, get 
you well after the Indians, just ready to punish them, and 
then under the hue and cry of wrongs, cruelty, etc., stop you. 
If you get after them early with good officers who will never 
give up, but follow them' day and night, until doom's day if 
necessary, until they are severely punished for past crimes, 
and feel our power, so that they will in future respect us, 
is the way to settle the Indian policy, and it can be easily 
done. I have always held this and I know Indians look upon 
us with contempt and with no respect. 

C. B. & St. Joe road is finished, and running from Council 
Bluffs, 30 miles south. Northwestern Railroad is within five 
miles, will be at the Bluffs next week. It landed your troops 
within eight miles of Omaha. 

You can get all the produce, flour and grain, and perhaps 
some groceries needed for troops and posts north of Kansas 
and Nebraska here in Western Iowa, and lay it down in Coun- 
cil Bluffs or Omaha, cheaper than you can right in St. Bonis 



Personal Recollections oe Sherman. 195 



market, thereby saving time and transportation. The railroad 
south lets us right into the finest part of Missouri and best 
of Western Iowa — the road opens up the grain and produce 
market of Central Iowa, the best of the state. It is hard to 
get the staff department at Washington out of the old channel. 
They don't grasp those things as I think they ought to do; 
hope you will help them. 

I am now making surveys for the Missouri River bridge ; 
a knotty or "sandy" question, but will solve it. We want to 
build this year. May have to wait 'til after spring freshets 
before we can do much. 

I keep General Cooke and his staff department posted in 
our movements, so that they can take advantage of them in 
their plans ; and I believe as I have answered all your questions 
and given you much insight as to future plans, it will enable 
you to take advantage of it. What I have said about points, 
intentions, etc., I prefer you should keep private, as such 
things, when they are made public, often annoy or sometimes 
damage us ; but you understand it all. 

Mrs. D. and myself desire to be remembered to your fam- 
ily ; hope you will come to see us soon and bring Mrs. S. 

I shall go to Utah in May or June to fix locations from 
Laramie River to Salt Lake. Will you not go out there this 
year? I was very sorry to hear of the death of Sawyer. 

I saw General Grant while east; says he will go to Denver 
in spring or summer. 

Was glad to hear rebs continue their respect for you. Do 
they have much honest respect for us? And do they at heart 
care anything for the old flag? Will they not side with any 
power that is against, rather than for us? 

I am truly and respectfully, 
G. M. DODGE. 

St. Louis, January 16th, 1867. 

I have just read with intense interest your letter of the 
14th, and though you wanted it kept to myself I believe you 
will sanction my sending it to General Grant for his individ- 
ual perusal, to be returned to me. 

It is almost a miracle to grasp your proposition to finish to 
Fort Sanders this year, but you have done so much that I 
mistrust my own judgment and accept yours. 

I regard this road of yours as the solution of the Indian 
question, and of the Mormon affairs, and therefore give you 
all that I possibly can, but the demand for soldiers every- 
where, and the slowness of enlistment, especially among the 
blacks, limit our ability to respond. Naturally each officer 



196 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

exaggerates his own troubles, and appeals for men; thus Orel 
is greatly exercised lest the blacks and whites commence a 
race Avar, and would have four or five regiments scattered over 
the whole state of Arkansas to prevent local trouble. I want 
to punish and subdue the Indians, who are the enemies of our 
race, and progress, but even in that it is well sometimes to 
proceed with due deliberation'. I have now General Terry on 
the Upper Missouri, General Auger with you. and General 
Hancock just below, all young, enterprising men, fit for coun- 
sel or the field. I will endeavor to arrange so that hereafter 
all shall act on common principles and with a common pur- 
pose, and the first step, of course, is to arrange for the ac- 
cumulation of the necessary men and materials at the right 
points, for which your railroad is the very thing. 

Auger will be with you before this, and you will find him 
prepared to second you to the utmost of his power. I want 
him to study his problem and call on Grant, through me, for 
the least force that is adequate, for we must respect the de- 
mand from other quarters. Of course, 1 am disposed to find 
fault that cur soldiers are now tied up in the southern states. 
but in the light they are now regarded, it would be impolitic 
and imprudent for me to say so publicly. All 1 can do is to 
keep General Grant well informed, so that he may distribute 
his army to the best advantage of the whole country. 

As to supplies, General Auger will be and is at liberty to 
control this question according to the state of facts. The staff 
officers at Omaha are supplied with funds, and are on the spot, 
authorized to buy or call for supplies from Chicago or St. 
Louis. Though West loAva might supply your market abund- 
antly, yet if suddenly called on for millions of pounds of flour, 
sugar, coffee and baeon, they would jump the price, but you 
know we have now quartermasters and commissaries abso- 
lutely disinterested, and qualified to arrange this matter. I 
will surely be up this year many times, and will go over every 
rail more than once. 1 don't want to go to Utah until your 
road approaches Bridger, which cannot be this year, and I 
don't want Congress to bother itself about Mormon affairs 
until then, and the Gentiles would do well to hold their ton- 
gues and pens until it becomes feasible to act in case of law 
or threats. It is nonsense now for us to send a large force 
there, and besides, it is impossible, and would be to the in- 
terests of the Mormons, by the prices they would exact of us 
for meat and bread. 

Don't fail to keep in with General Auger, Myers, etc.. who 
can be of service to you in many ways. 

W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General. 



Persoxal Recollections of Sherman. 197 

General Sherman scut me this letter he received from Gen- 
eral Grant : 

I have carefully read the enclosed letter from General 
Dodge, and in accordance with your request return it. Now 
that the Government has assumed the obligation to guarantee 
the bonds of the Pacific Railroad, it becomes a matter of great 
pecuniary interest to see it completed as soon as possible. 

Every protection practicable should be given by the mili- 
tary, both to secure the rapid completion of the road and to 
avoid pretexts on the part of the builders to get further as- 
sistance from the Government. 

I do not see my way clear now to furnish von further rein- 
forcements beyond one regiment of infantry. As soon as one 
regiment of . the invalid Corps is organized, ! can have the 
Canada frontier garrisoned by it, with a few companies of 
artillery', and send you the 4th Infantry new on duty there. 

It might be further practicable to send you a regiment of 
invalids to occupy such depots as are necessary to he kept up, 
and thereby relieve more active men for duty in the front. 
I will not send them, however, without an intimation from you 
that they can be made available. You might be reinforced to 
some extent by increasing the standard of companies to the 
maximum number allowed by law. 

General P. St. George Cooke, who was in command of the 
department, was relieved and General Auger appointed to 
the command. As General Cooke had been very active in giv- 
ing us aid and escorts, I wrote General Sherman in relation to 
it, and this is his answer: 

St. Louis, January 22d, 1867. 

Yours of January 9th, for some reason, did not reach me 
'til today. I had nothing to do with Cooke's removal. The 
order originated at Washington and came to me completed, 
without my being consulted, and I do not know what influ- 
enced General Grant, but never supposed General Cooke was 
in the least to blame for the Phil Kearney massacre. That post 
had been completed and gan ison increased to the largest esti- 
mate made by anyone up to that time, and I would have vol- 
unteered to General Cooke that explanation, only the instant 
I sent him a copy of the telegram, he replied that he presumed 
I was the cause of his removal, which debarred me from mak- 
ing any explanation. 

As to Auger, I only know him of his old army record, 
which was verv good. He was always a favorite, and was, I 



198 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

think, one of Grant's comrades of the 4th Infantry. The prob- 
abilities are he will be in command of that department a long 
time, and will soon master all the questions, and be able him- 
self, if necessary, in person to lead his troops. Yon will lose 
nothing by the change, for T will make it incumbent on the 
military to give yon earnest attention for the protection of 
your road. You have General Hancock on the sonth of yon, 
and Anger with yon — two of the best officers, and they shall 
have every man that I can get and spare. We are pressed 
for men at all points. I fear the political status has a tendency 
to make men of property of the sonth oblivious to their own in- 
terests, for outrages on negroes and Union men appear to 
increase. It is alleged that the better people don't 
lend their help to stop it. as they say it is none of their busi- 
ness. If our army has to do all the dirty police work of the 
south, yon can see it will all be absorbed there, giving us a 
small share of the army for the real public enemy — the Indian. 
But so far as interest in your success is concerned, you may 
rest easy, that both Grant and I feel deeply concerned in the 
safety of your national enterprise. 

On February 20th, 1867, General Sherman wrote me as 
follows : 

I have just received your letter, of February 8th, and map. 
I now have an engineer officer with me, Colonel Merrill, the 
same, you will remember, who went with Thomas as far as 
Atlanta. He will now be able to compile and make useful all 
maps that are authentic, and I will be obliged for all and any 
you can give me. 

By this time you must be well acquainted with General 
Auger, and I hope you will work together like brothers. 

I will want to come up to Omaha soon, and would like to 
have a pass over the road from Chicago to Omaha. T have a 
yearly pass over the Chicago & Northwestern road, but don't 
think that is the company that comes to Omaha. Do you know 
if the railroad from Keokuk to Des Moines will join the Boons- 
boro road by the main valley or move to the west by the Coon 
Line of the Bock Island road? All could save distance by 
making junction with the finished Omaha road at a point in 
Carroll county. I am satisfied that our St. Louis and Missouri 
people are alive to the necessity and will, within twelve or 
fifteen months, have communication with Council Bluffs, via 
St. Joseph and the Missouri Valley, as also by prolonging the 
North Missouri railroad to the Keokuk and Des Moines. Con- 
dit Smith is the contractor on both, and tells me he is making 
sure and good progress. 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 199 

I think in another year, by these railroads and the exten- 
sion of your great road to the Black Hills (Sanders, if pos- 
sible) and the Smoky Hill to the neighborhood of Cheyenne 
Hills, we can act so energetically that both the Sioux and 
Cheyennes must die, or submit to our dictation. This year 
we are forced to do the best we can, but hope you will keep 
your men at work, in spite of rumors and even apparent 
dangers, for both General Auger and I will do all to cover the 
working parties that is possible, only we may consider it bet- 
ter done by combining all against the hostile Sioux offensively, 
instead of keeping the soldiers close in, in sight of your men. 
I think with a little explanation from you, the working par- 
ties will understand that they are more safe along the Lodge 
Pole with our soldiers two or three hundred miles north, 
than if those same soldiers were close at hand. 

I also received this letter in May, notifying me of his con- 
templated trip abroad : 

St. Louis, May 7th, 1867. 

My Dear General Dodge : I have your valuable letter of 
April 28th, and am fully convinced that you will complete that 
road this season to the head of Crow Creek, and it may be, to 
Fort Sanders. AVhere the spring has been so prolonged, I 
think you may safely count on a late fall. I will not be sur- 
prised if you lay rails up to Christmas. 

I think this year is our crisis on the plains,' because every 
month and year will diminish the necessity for troops in the 
reconstructed states, and give us more and more troops for 
the plains, especially cavalry. 

I suppose I am in for the excursion up the Mediterranean. 
We are advertised to sail for Gibraltar June 8, and ought to 
reach Marseilles July 4. We are then to cruise along the 
Mediterranean and Black Seas, stopping at Genoa, Leghorn, 
Naples, Athens, Constantinople and the Crimea (Sebastapol) ; 
then out to Smyrna, Beirout, Joppa and Alexandria, back to 
the coast of Spain, and out to Medina, and home in October. 
If you will keep Nichols here advised, he will reach me 
through General Dix at Paris, and I will arrange for General 
Grant to telegraph me should anything of enough importance 
occur to call me back, in which event. I will lie prepared to 
leave the ship and return by way of England. My depart- 
ments are now well commanded, and should any combination 
of the troops be necessary, General Grant will order. I would 
not go if I thought anything would suffer, but it is vain for me 
to suppose my presence necessary when General Grant freely 



200 Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 

offers to spare me. I will bear in mind your wish and will 
write you some letters from abroad as a keepsake, and as evi- 
dence of my personal friendship. 

Wishing you and vours all possible happiness, etc., 

W. T. SHERMAN. 

On receipt of General Sherman's letter of May 7, I wrote 
him fully about the attacks on our forces and the depredations 
of the Indians, and he answered as follows : 

St. Louis, May 27, 1867. 

I received your dispatches, and now have vour interesting 
letter of May 20th. 

I have had a good deal of correspondence about the protec- 
tion of the country along the railroad, which I deem of the 
first importance, although to make it effectual I see no other 
way than first to attack the Sioux, who remain near the Yel- 
lowstone in defiance. If they remain, as a matter of course, 
they will not confine themselves to attacking the trains that 
go to supply Phil. Kearney and C. F. Smith, but will come 
south to your road. I think General Auger should go there 
in force, and we must also get other troops to defend our 
working parties. I have asked General Grant for another 
battalion of cavalry for that special purpose, and if he can 
he will grant it. You know that the same call comes from 
every quarter, and it is very hard to say which is of the most 
importance. I* wish to assure you that I do not under-value 
your work for, on its account, I give up my proposed trip to 
Europe, and if I can, will come up this summer and attend to 
it in person ; but I know that of myself I can do little without 
a force in reserve, and that I will try and obtain. If the worst 
comes to the worst, I will call on Nebraska for a regiment of 
mounted troops, for the special task of defending interests 
which are vital to her progress. I don't want to do this if it 
can be avoided, as every state and territory that has contact 
with Indians will raise a clamor, as has been done more than 
once, for local troops serving in their own interest. One 
would suppose more of the regular army should be among the 
Indians, where danger is imminent, instead of in southern 
cities, such as Mobile and New Orleans, but when Mr. Key 
can announce that he can have all the regular army to back 
him in his speeches at the south, we see that there is a call 
for troops there, on questions that Congress thinks are as vital 
as those of the Indian question. I have the same appeals from 
Minnesota, Montana and Dakota, as well as from Kansas, New 
Mexico and Colorado. Eaeh wants enough of the army to 



Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 201 

guard them against all the Indians, but I note your road as 
of the most important and have given General Auger a very 
large portion of my whole command, but will increase it if I 
can get the men. 

February 22d, 1868, when I was in command of the De- 
partment of the Missouri, I located the post of Fort Sanders, 
where I thought the railroad would pass very near and I 
made a reservation there of ten square miles of ground. When 
we came to make our surveys, our line passed through this 
reservation. We established the town of Laramie City on a 
portion of this reservation. I had no idea the Government 
would make any objection to our occupying the reservation. 
But the officers at Fort Sanders reported the fact that we were 
locating the line and building it through the reservation, and 
it brought orders from the War Department in relation to it, 
and on February 21st, I wrote General Win. T. Sherman to be 
allowed to go on the reservation until proper authority from 
the War Department was obtained. 

On March 3d, 1868, General Sherman wrote me the follow- 
ing letter in relation to the subject which I had laid before 

him : 

St. Louis, Mo. 

I got your dispatch last night and have answered it; have 
also written General Auger in general terms to facilitate 
the progress of the road by conceding the use of ground near 
Fort Sanders for depot, etc. But what you want is a perma- 
nent title, not that mere temporary use that we are empowered 
to grant. 

I advise you to cause the most accurate plat to be made 
that you can, and delineate thereon the ground you want, with 
its metes and bounds, and what part of it is included within 
our Fort Sanders, the indefinite use of the space delineated, 
or for an absolute title. This paper should go to the Secre- 
tary of War. who would probably send it down through Gen- 
eral Grant and myself, to General Auger, the department com- 
mander, all of whom would doubtless recommend the grant, 
provided the depot, as you say, be as far off from the posts as 
two miles. 

In case the land has been publicly dedicated to use as a 
military reservation, an act of Congress might be necessary to 



202 Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 

convey it to you, but, as the public land surveys have not yet 
reached the Laramie plains, I take it that our occupation of 
that reservation can be limited by a simple order of the Sec- 
retary of "War, so as to leave the railroad company the right 
of selection, under the bill you showed me, in Washington this 
winter. 

I would not be willing to order the modification of the lim- 
its of reservation, after the map has been made and filed in 
the War Department, as I believe is the case with the reserva- 
tion in question, but I would not hesitate to grant you the 
right-of-way and the use of any reasonable part of the reser- 
vation for side tracks and depots, but my grant would only be 
temporary, and could be modified, altered, or annulled by my 
successors in office, or by higher authority. 

In a similar case, at Fort Riley, Congress granted twenty 
acres for a depot within the reserve, and a fractional section 
on its western edge. 

T had been pressing General Sherman and General Auger 
to make preparations for .the furnishing of my engineering 
parties with escorts and for placing troops along all the lines 
that was to be opened up, for the purpose of protecting them 
from the Indian depredations. The Indians had been aggres- 
sive since 1867, and from the information I could get were pre- 
paring to swoop down upon us as soon as we opened up work 
in the spring. 

In answer to my letters, on January 23d, 1868, General 
Sherman wrote me as follows: 

January 23d, 1868. 
Last summer when on the Indian commission, Senator Hen- 
derson repeatedly told me that the subsidy of $16,000 per mile 
to railroads and the liberal compensation to the stage lines was 
intended purposely to be in line of "protection" by the mili- 
tary. General Auger has shown me your letter of the 14th. in 
which yon ask pretty large escorts and posts for the protection 
and the operation of your road. I wish you would see Mr. Hen- 
derson, ^how him this, and have a simple resolution passed 
Congress directing the General-in-Chief, or President, to af- 
ford suitable military protection to the parties engaged in the 
location and construction of the Pacific Railroad. This will 
warrant the expenses to which we are put in providing the 
troops and trains employed for that purpose. 




"uT : ^ W imk 




tSrm 





Personal Recollections of Sherman. 203 



We had to hear the blame of precipitating an Indian war, 
because we tried to proted these roads and stage lines, and 
thai was used as an argumenl why the military should qo1 be 
used for a purpose antagonistic to the [ndian nation. 

On receipt of (his Idler, I introduced a resolution in Con- 
gress providing for this, which was promptly passed, giving the 
military full authority in the matter, although Congress 
thought they had already given it to them. 

The hacks were joined at Promontory on May 10, 1869, 
and not forgetting what Sherman had done to make the great 
transcontinental line a success, 1 sent him a dispatch when the 
last spike was being driven : 

Promontory, Utah, May 10, 1869. 
( reneral W. T. Shei man :. 
Washington, I). C. : 

The tracks of the Union and Central Pacific Railroads were 
joined today at Promontory, I'lah, 2,500 miles west of the At- 
lantic, and 790 miles east of the Pacific Oceans. 

Your continuous active aid. with that of the Army, has 
made yon a pari of us and enabled us to complete our work in 
so short a time. I congratulate you upon it, and thank you for 
all you have done for us. ~ ,, ~ ~ ~ 

And General Sherman answered as follows : 

n ! /~i tit t^ -, Washington, Mav 11, 1869. 

Coneral G. M. Dodge: 

In common with millions, T sat yesterday and heard the 
mystic taps of the telegraphic battery and heard the nailing 
of the last spike in the great Pacific road. Indeed, am 1 its 
friend? Yes. Yet. am I to l»e a part of it, Tor as early as 1864 
1 was viee president of the effort begun in San Francisco under 
the contrad of Robinson, Seymour & Company. As soon as 
General Thomas makes certain preliminary inspections in his 
new command on the Pacific, I will go out. and. I need not say. 
will have different facilities from thai of 1864, when the only 
way to California was by sail around Cape Morn, taking Our 
ships 196 days. All honor Pi you, to Durant, to Jack and Dan 
Casement, to Reed, and the thousands of brave fellows who 
have wrought out this glorious problem, spile of changes, 
storms, and even doubts of the incredulous, and all the obsta- 
cles you have now rapidly surmounted. 

W. T. SHERMAN, General. 



204 Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 

There is no one who has taken so active a part, and who 
has accomplished so much for the benefit of the Government, in 
the building of the transcontinental railroads as General Sher- 
man. He has taken occasion to look after and to speak his 
mind freely about them since their construction, and in Sep- 
tember, 1888, in commenting upon a paper which I read be- 
fore the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, upon the Trans- 
continental Railway, he spoke as follows: 

I need not speak to an audience such as this in praise of 
the historic paper just read by General Dodge. It so hap- 
pened that I was, before the Civil War, during it, and since, 
deeply interested in the great problem of a Pacific railway. 
Every word of General Dodge's paper is true to my personal 
knowledge, and I endorse every proposition he has made. 

When the Civil War was over, you must all remember that 
I was stationed in St. Louis, in command of all the troops on 
the western plains as far out as Utah. I found General Dodge 
as chief engineer of the Union Pacific railroad, in the success 
of which enterprise I felt the greatest possible interest. I 
promised the most perfect protection by troops of the recon- 
noitering, surveying and construction parties, and made fre- 
quent visits, on horseback and in ambulance, and noticed that 
the heads of all the parties had been soldiers during the Civil 
War. I firmly believe that the Civil War trained the men 
who built that great national highway, and, as General Dodge 
has so very graphically described, he could call on any body of 
men to "fall in," "take arms, form platoons and companies, " 
"deploy as skirmishers" and fight the marauding Indians just 
as they had learned to fight <the rebels down at Atlanta. ' I 
will not claim that they were all of the Army of the Tennessee, 
but the heads of the parties were all, or nearly all Union sol- 
diers. 

I was particularly interested in that part of the paper 
wherein is described the discovery of the way to cross the 
Black Hills beyond Cheyenne. There was no Cheyenne then. 
They were limited by the law to 116-foot grade to the mile. 
Instead of following the valley of Lodge Pole Creek, as all 
previous engineers had done, he chose the upper or anti-clinal 
line, instead of the lower, or sin-clinal line. This was a stroke 
of genius, by which they surmounted the Rocky Mountains by 
a grade of eighty feet to the mile, whereas by any other route 
then known he would have been forced to a grade of 200 feet, 
or to adopt short cnrves through the Laramie Pass. 



'Personal Recollections of Sherman. 205 



The Union and Central Pacific Railroads were the pioneer 
trans-continental roads in America, and every man who did 
his part should receive all honor. Now there are five trans- 
continental railroads, the last the Canadian Pacific. 

It so happened that two years ago, having traveled by 
every other way, I expressed a wish to return from San Fran- 
cisco eastward by the Canadian Pacific, just completed. To 
my amazement I discovered that the president of that railroad 
was Sir William C. Van Home, one of our railroad men. edu- 
cated in our war between Nashville and Atlanta. He was then, 
as now, the president of that railroad, with a salary of from 
$25,000 to $50,000, and they talked of making him a Duke. He 
can hold his own with any Duke I have thus far encountered. 
Anyhow, he acted like a Prince to me. From his office in 
Montreal he ordered his agent at Victoria, in British Colum- 
bia, to extend to General Sherman every possible courtesy, 
which was done. I had a special ear for myself and daughter, 
Lizzie, with privilege of stopping over at any station. 

On my way eastward I met many people and heard many 
things of deep interest to me, and, maybe to you. There are 
three mounfain ranges between the Mississippi, or rather the 
Missouri Valley, and the Pacific Ocean — the Rockies, the Wa- 
satch and the Cascades. These converge to the northwest, so 
that in the Canadian Pacific the engineers had to meet them 
closer together than by our Northern Pacific or by the Central 
or Union. 

In the first explorations the English engineers saw no 
escape from the conclusion that to pass these ranges from 
their starting point on to the Pacific at Vancouver, a magnifi- 
cent port, they would have to follow the grade of Fraser River. 
by its west branch to its very head, near the Henry House, 
and thence descend the Athabasca eastward to Winnepeg, etc. 
This route was about 400 miles longer than the direct line. The 
board of directors in Montreal then called on the experienced 
engineers of the United States, and found a man who under- 
took to cut across this great bend or loop. 

Instead of following the west branch of the Fraser River, 
he took the east branch, Thompson's, up to the Kampools' 
lake. The mountains eastward seemed impassable, but he rea- 
soned "where there's a will there's a way." Through brush 
and trees he forced his way, and found a pass in the Cascade 
range called Kicking Horse, where his horse had kicked him 
on the knee. Persevering, he in the next or main range, ob- 
served the flight of an eagle, which did not as usual pass over 
the highest visible peak but disappeared around a point; so 
he followed the same course, found an unexpected break, and 
located a railroad with less grade than the Union Pacific, and 



206 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

saved a distance of four hundred miles, or twenty millions of 
dollars. 

In looking over the usual timetables of the Canadian Pa- 
cific, you Avill find the Kicking Horse and Eagle Pass through 
which millions of people will travel and millions of dollars of 
freight will pass. All are, in part, the consequence of our 
Civil War, and the men it educated. 

These men were S. B. Reed and M. F. Hurd, both engineers 
in the survey and construction of the Union Pacific railway. 

General Sherman heard I was going to Europe and volun- 
tarily sent me this letter: 

Headquarters, Army of the United States, 

Washington, D. C, April 20th, 1877. 
To U. S. Counsuls Abroad : 

I learn that General G. M. Dodge is starting soon for Eu- 
rope, expecting to leave his children at school whilst he returns 
to America, where he is actively employed in railroad construc- 
tion and management. I take great pleasure in commending 
General Dodge and family to the courtesy and politeness of 
all Americans, especially such as occupy official positions, be- 
cause General Dodge is one of the generals who actually 
fought throughout the Civil War, with great honor and great 
skill, commanding a regiment, brigade, division and finally a 
Corps d'armee, the highest rank command to which any officer 
can attain. 

He was with me in the west, especially in thp Atlanta cam- 
paign, where he was severely wounded, close to Atlanta, and 
I think that he, and especially his children, should experience 
the attention of all officers of a government that might have 
perished had it not been for the blood of just such men as Gen- 
eral Dodge. 

With great respect, 

W. T. SHERMAN, General. 

After the publication of General Sherman's Memoirs, there 
were a great many criticisms from officers under him and 
from others in relation to many of the statements in the Me- 
moirs as to the part taken by each, and as to his own move- 
ments. 

Tn answer to these criticisms, General Sherman said he 
thought each person should write up the Civil War as they 



Personal Eecollections op Sherman. 207 



saw it ; that was the way he did and he thought everyone else 
should do the same; that no two persons saw the same thing 
alike. 

General Sherman wrote me a letter asking me to write up 
the part the Sixteenth Army Corps took in the campaign as I 
saw it and when I sent the paper to him, he immediately wrote 
me that it was of so much importance that he should print it 
in the appendix to his second edition, which was done. 

My communication to him was as follows : 

Dear General : Your suggestion to send you a brief resume 
of the part taken by my Corps (the Sixteenth) of the Army of 
the Tennessee in the Aalanta campaign, was received some 
time ago. I reply as early as possible in view of absence and 
other engagements. 

I wish to refer to only such parts of the Atlanta campaign 
as have been to some extent the subject of public comment, 
through your Memoirs, and to which my personal testimony 
may contribute light. 

I shall therefore confine myself to the attempted surprise 
of Kesaca, May 9, 1864, and some following events, and to the 
repulse of General Hood's rear movement at Atlanta July 22. 

The Sixteenth Corps, as the vanguard of General Mcpher- 
son's army, penetrated, first through the Chattanooga moun- 
tains, and made the attack on Resaca. The same Corps, while 
moving to a new position around Atlanta, fell across the way 
of Hood's army, and met him on such opportunely good 
ground that the battle was accepted on the spot. 

I state these general facts to save you the trouble of ex- 
plaining them again if you should ever make use of this let- 
ter. Your rapid and general summary of a maze of events, in 
which the part of a Corps is more or less lost in the movement 
of several armies, has attracted my admiration for its clear- 
ness, and I can well see how the limitations of your bc-k have 
compelled a severe distribution of prominence to the many 
detachments. 

The left Aving of the Sixteenth Corps, the other wing not 
being in this campaign, arrived at Chattanooga in the evening 
of May 5, in the cars, the batteries and transportation follow- 
ing by road from Pulaski, Tennessee, and Athens. Alabama. 

The same evening General McPherson's orders arrived to 
take the initiative for his army, and to move to Gordon 's Mills. 
While marching there the next day, verbal orders came to push 
a portion of my command forward toward Villanow, and seize 



208 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

Ship's Gap. Sprague's Brigade, of the Fourth Division, did 
this at midnight of the same day, and the next day we had 
passed through and occupied Villanow. 

The third day (May 8), my command, with the Second 
Division in advance, moved rapidly to Snake Creek Gap, one 
day before my orders had contemplated, they advising me to 
march when the Fifteenth Corps had closed up on me. 

I had heard from General McPherson, personally however, 
that the object was to threaten Johnston's flank and commun- 
ications, and the Ninth Illinois Mounted Infantry, supported by 
the Thirty-ninth Iowa, went forward through the Gap to 
Sugar Creek Valley, a portion of the Corps without transpor- 
tation, following, and intrenching that night, thus holding its 
eastern outlet. 

On the evening of May 8, instead of May 9, I was aston- 
ished to find this strong position, the sidegate to Johnston's 
rear, not only undefended but unoccupied, though a few men 
might have held it. 

Having reported the fact to General McPherson, and also 
that Colonel Phillips reported Resaca occupied by a Brigade 
of the enemy, I received his orders to march at 6 o'clock next 
morning, the 9th of May, toward Resaca, and there await spe- 
cific orders and instructions. The object of the movement 
was stated to be a demonstration upon Resaca, while other 
troops were to cut the railroad north of that place. 

At daylight of the 9th, my advance, consisting of a regi- 
ment of mounted infantry, supported by a regiment of infan- 
try, was attacked by Fergusin's Brigade of the enemy's Cav- 
alry, and Colonel Phillips was severely wounded. 

We drove the enemy rapidly before us to Rome Cross- 
roads, where I received orders to advance upon Resaca, to 
press forward until I should succeed in developing the enemy 
in line of battle, or in his fortifications, but not to attack him 
there without orders. 

I was also ordered to hold the Calhoun and Dalton Cross- 
roads, about two miles west of Resaca, if I became possessed 
of it, until the Fifteenth Corps arrived. These orders were 
obeyed, my force skirmishing heavily the entire distance to 
the Calhoun Crossroads. 

The enemy was discovered in line of battle on Bald Hill, 
three-quarters of a mile west of Resaca, and also in his works 
at Resaca. 

I placed the Fourth Division at the crossroads, formed the 
Second Division in two lines, and carried the hill and holding 
them under instructions, awaited my orders from General Mc- 
Pherson, to whom 1 had promptly reported, sending, I think, 
my staff officer, Captain Edward Jonas, telling General Mc- 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 209 



Pherson that if we could make a prompt attack we could carry 
Resaca, as the enemy in my front gave way readily, and that 
though prisoners had reported the arrival of Canty 's Brigade 
the night before, I did not believe it, as no such force as a 
Division showed in our front. 

General McPherson soon came upon the ground in person. 
He directed me to send some mounted men up the Dalton road 
to reconnoiter the country and find an approach to the rail- 
road, while he would go back and bring up the Fifteenth (Lo- 
gan's) Corps. 

Until the Corps arrived, I was to hold the Bald Hill indi- 
cated, and the Dalton and Calhoun Crossroads. I sent all the 
mounted men I had with me at the time, 18 in number (of the 
Ninth Illinois) under Captain Hughes. They proceeded to- 
ward Dalton, struck the railroad two miles south of Tilton, 
and found it strongly patrolled by cavalry. They cut the tele- 
graph wires, burned a wood station, and reported to me again 
at dark. 

Meanwhile the enemy came marching out of Resaca up the 
Dalton Railroad, and I ordered the Fourth Division to march 
from Calhoun Crossroads and to intercept them, and to take 
position on the railroad north of Resaca. This order was re- 
ported to General McPherson promptly ; he replied that I 
must hold the crossroads until relieved. 

It was about 4 o'clock when I finally received from one of 
General McPherson 's staff officers the information that the 
Fifteenth Corps was closing up and that I was now at liberty 
to carry out my movement against the railroad. 

It was intrusted by me to General Veatch, with Fuller's 
and Sprague's Brigade of his Division (the Fourth). The Sec- 
ond Division was stationed on Bald Hill, which I had occupied 
about noon, and the left of this Division was now assailed with 
musketry, while the marching Division was fired upon as they 
advanced in column in full view of the enemy. 

Fuller, in the advance, moved with spirit across the west 
fork of Mill Creek, crossed an open field, and the skirmish 
line was up to the timber skirting the railroad, when another 
order came from General McPherson to look to my right, as 
the enemy was massing to strike me there. I was with Fuller's 
advance at this time and the enemy that had come out of 
Resaca had opened on Fuller's troops in the open field. 

Nearby was a good cover of woods on the east side of the 
creek, to attain which I changed the direction of Fuller's col- 
umn more to the north; his skirmish line took some prisoners: 
the morning rumor was confirmed by them that Canty 's Bri- 
gade had arrived. 



210 Personal Recollections of Sherman,. 

Fuller steadily advanced, however, and as soon as his 
skirmish lines debouched from the woods, a regiment of the 
enemy's infantry and a battery in position opened directly 
upon his right and front. Another notice had been received 
from General McPherson, as we got to the roads, that Sprague's 
Bridade was not following us, having been arrested by him to 
hold the space between the Second and the advance of the 
Fourth Division. 

While Fuller was executing the movement to gain the rail- 
road, a final order came to me from General McPherson to 
halt the column, and to repair in person to him back of Bald 
Hill occupied by the Second Division. There I found Gen- 
eral McPherson and General Logan with the advance of Lo- 
gan's Fifteenth Corps. They were discussing the propriety 
of an attack upon Eesaca. General Logan asked me what I 
thought of the situation and if we could carry the place. I re- 
plied I thought we could. Logan responded that he was glad I 
had so much faith. 

McPherson appeared to feel the responsibility of his or- 
ders from the Commander of the Army, as well as the responsi- 
bility of holding the gap we had already seized. He listened 
attentively to the conversation, to my description of the posi- 
tion, and to the nature of the orders I had given. He reluct- 
antly gave orders for us to return immediately. 

The Sixteenth Corps withdrew over the eight miles they 
had already marched that day, reaching the eastern debouche 
of the gap at midnight. I had with the entire Corps only 17 
wagons since leaving Chattanooga. 

My transportation had not yet come up, and the men and 
animals had been without any food for a day and a half other 
than what could be afforded by the poor and picked country 
we had marched over. 

A day or two after- our return to the gap, General Mc- 
Pherson stated to me the contents of a letter or letters from 
General Sherman commenting upon the march to Resaca. He 
seemed to feel that their criticism amounted to censure, but lie 
had assumed the responsibility. 

He said a part of one of his Corps was still west of the 
Gap, guarding trains; that he could not have thrown his whole 
force across the railroad, as they were situated, and that he 
looked for his vindication to the successful termination of the 
campaign. He said : 

We had ascertained, from prisoners taken the day of the 
advance to Resaca, that the enemy knew just what force had 
passed through the Gap, and where the balance of the army 
was. He made the final decision to return to the Gap between 



Personal Recollections of Sherman . "211 

5 and 6 o'clock in the afternoon, being satisfied nothing could 
be accomplished by attacking an entrenched post that late in 
the day. 

At Snake Creek Gap we waited three days, seeing the whole 
army move through the pass we had captured, "to Johnston's 
complete surprise," and fortifying Sugar Creek Valley. May 
13, the Fourth Division of my Corps formed on the right of the 
Fifteenth Corps, resting on the Oostenaula River, and took 
part in the attack on Resaca. 

My Second Division (Sweeney's), May 14, went on to Lay's 
Ferry, below Resaca, to cross the Oostenaula River and 
threaten Johnston's communications. General Rice with the 
advance Brigade crossed in the face of Walker's Division. As 
soon as this movement in the rear was accomplished, Johnston 
began to retreat from Resaca, which he had defended a sec- 
ond time with his whole army, and which he "only evacuated 
because his safety demanded it." 

I desire only to refer to the action of July 4. described in 
the Memoirs as "noisy but not desperate." 

The Fourth Division of my Corps, under General Fuller, 
pressed forward on that day, crossing the Nickajack Creek at 
Ruff's Mill, driving the enemy before us, until, after two miles 
of skirmishing, we developed him in .strong entrenchments and 
in a very heavy force. 

The Memoirs imply that this was the head of the column of 
the Army of the Cumberland, and unintentionally leave it to 
be inferred that the storming of the works was General 
Thomas' performance. It was General McPherson who sent 
me a message to attack at discretion, or if I thought I could, 
carry the works. A prisoner informed me that Hood's Corps 
was before me, and I proceeded to reconnoiter their works, 
which I found very strong, but, as I observed a singular con- 
fusion there, indicative of retreating, and knew that the 4th 
of July would be a good day to assault, I formed a charging 
column of a part of the Fourth Division, the 30th and 27th 
Ohio, and the 64th Illinois Infantry of my Corps, under com- 
mand of Colonel E. F. Noyes, 

A supporting column was made up of the Sixty-sixth Illi- 
nois and" the Second Iowa of the Second Division. Noyes 
moved forward with gallantry, although he fell at the first fire 
and lost his leg, but through almost impenetrable abattis and 
fallen timber, the men went over the intrenchments, and took 
100 prisoners, and they so settled the enemy's confusion, if 
any there was. that the whole of that line was soon aban- 
doned. 

I now come to the last subject of my letter, the battle of 
the 22d of July, where General McPherson lost his life. 



212 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

The movement ordered by General Sherman, of the trans- 
fer of the Army of the Tennessee from the right to the extreme 
left of the combined armies began June 9. 

Marching from Sand Town, by the rear to the left, on the 
9th of July, the Sixteenth Corps, bivouacked, at 10 o'clock at 
night, near Marietta, continued on at 3 o'clock, in the dark of 
the morning, and that day had crossed the Chattahoochee^ 
spanned it with a foot-bridge 700 feet long, covered it with a 
long tete-du-pont and intrenched on the Atlanta side. 

The march was 31 miles, the heat was intense, yet the men 
were uncomplaining and ardent, and for nearly three days 
more they worked in reliefs of 1,000 in the mud and water 
until Ave completed. July 13, at Roswell, Ga., a double-track 
trestle bridge 14 feet high and 710 feet long. The material 
used was standing timber and some cotton mills. Over this 
bridge the entire army of the Tennessee, with trains and ar- 
tillery, passed. 

On the 17th the command moved toward Decatur, cutting 
a new road so as not to infringe upon the Seventeenth and 
Twenty-third Corps, which took the old roads, keeping its 
communication with those Corps; the Sixteenth advanced be- 
hind its pioneers, preceded by the Ninth Illinois Mounted In- 
fantry, which skirmished with the enemy at Nancy's Creek and 
drove them across. Here one of my scouts, who had left 
Atlanta that morning, brought the first intelligence of Hood 
having superseded Johnston, which was at once sent to Gen- 
erals Sherman and McPherson. 

Decatur was occupied July 19, after a heavy skirmish and 
artillery fighting, and Colonel Spragne, with Second Brigade 
of Fourth Division, was placed there to relieve General Ger- 
rard's Cavalry Division, and to guard the trains. As Ave ap- 
proached Atlanta the converging Corps forced the Sixteenth 
Corps out of line, and a series of transfers began. 

On the 21st of July General Fuller, Avith First Brigade, 
Fourth Division, was put in reserve to the Seventeenth Corps, 
and United States Eegnlar Battery F, of the Fourth Division, 
aa'ms put in front line of General Giles A. Smith's Division of 
the Seventeenth Corps. 

My Second Division, under General SAveeney, moved for- 
ward three-quarters of a mile beyond its old position to a 
range of hills, the enemy contesting this advance very sharp- 
ly, and intrenched there. At 4 o'clock the next morning Gen- 
eral SAveeney reported to me that the enemy had disappeared 
from his front ; whereupon, I ordered him to push forward a 
heavy skirmish line. He soon found the enemy in force, in 
works surrounding Atlanta. 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 213 

The Second Division being displaced by the contraction of 
the lines, and the Fifteenth and Twenty-third Corps closing up 
on each other, General McPherson ordered me to move to the 
left of the army, and place Fuller's First Brigade on the left 
of the new position to be assumed by the Seventeenth Corps, 
and hold the rest of the command in reserve on the extreme 
left. 

Before this was done, I rode with General McPherson from 
his headquarters to the front on the direct Decatur and Atlan- 
ta road. It was quite early in the morning, the day of the 
Battle of Atlanta. The sudden evacuation of the enemy was 
surprising to both of us, and gave General McPherson serious 
concern. He requested me to return immediately to my com- 
mand and get the troops upon the ground they were to occupy 
and first examine that ground myself and choose a position 
on the left of the Seventeenth Corps, and also to feel towards 
the wagon road running from Atlanta south. 

T started at once. There was a crossroad leading to tl>e 
left from the Atlanta road, in the rear of the Fifteenth, and 
passing through the left of the Seventeenth Corps, by which 
I gave orders for the Sixteenth Corps to march, while I went 
forward rapidly with my engineers and a part of my staff to 
select the new position. 

I rode out beyond the Seventeenth Corps, far in advance 
and within easy musket-range of the works of Atlanta, passing 
the pioneers of the Seventeenth Corps intrenching the new 
line. The stillness was oppressive and I thought almost omin- 
ous. I could plainly see the enemy's troops working on their 
fortifications on the south side of Atlanta, and they allowed 
myself and staff to approach within easy musket range, not 
firing upon us until we turned about to return after having 
picked out the ground for the Corps. 

As we retired, the enemy opened on us briskly with musket 
and artillery. I at once sent word to General Fuller to send 
out working parties to intrench Ids line on the new position, 
and for the Second Division to move to the rear of the Seven- 
teenth Corps and bivouac. 

While passing through the Seventeenth Corps, I left an 
order for Murray's Second V. S. Battery to join its command, 
and also met General Giles A. Smith, commanding the left 
Division of the Seventeenth Corps, who told me that the Sev- 
enteenth Corps would not move into their new position until 
night. 

Immediately on receiving this information T sent General 
Sweeney orders to halt and bivouac his Division (the Second) 
where he then was. viz, about three-fourths of a mile in the 



214 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

rear of the Fifteenth Corps (General Logan's), and on the 
right and rear of the Seventeenth (General Blair's). 

At noon I reached General Fuller's headquarters, in the 
rear of the Seventeenth Corps and almost directly on an ex- 
tension of the line of S>veeney's Division, which had halted 
upon receiving my order, and was resting by the roadside. 

While at Fuller's headquarters T heard straggling shots 
fired to the east and to the left of General Sweeney's Divi- 
sion, which warned me, and I ordered General Fuller to put 
his command immediately in position, and spoke to him of the 
gap of about one-quarter of a mile that had existed between 
him and General Giles A. Smith, and of the exposed condition 
of the left flank of our army. 

I called his attention to the position of the ammunition 
train of the army, on the right of Fuller and in the rear of 
General Smith, where they were very much exposed, but I 
had scarcely given General Fuller his orders when the re- 
port came in that the enemy was in force in our rear, and de- 
veloping far beyond Sweeney. 

I sent a staff-officer to General Sweeney on the minute, with 
orders to immediately close on Fuller, (and he had already 
sent forward skirmishers in the direction of the enemy's fire) 
and developed the enemy in large force. The Second Division 
had just got into position when Hood's army appeared in 
force, advancing in three columns. 

I waited until the enemy was fully developed, then dis- 
patched a staff officer to General Giles A. Smith, telling him 
that the enemy was attacking in his rear, that he must refuse 
his left and join with Fuller. My staff-officer came back 
with the information that General Smith had not then been 
attacked, and the enemy was all developing beyond my right 
in the timber, covering Fuller's right flank, with their skirm- 
ish line extending around to the left of Sweeney. 

I observed no movement of General Smith, and became 
very anxious for the safety of that flank. I sent another staff- 
officer to General Smith, giving him fully the position of the 
enemy and telling him that a very large force was upon our 
rear. General Smith was by this time apprised of the fact of 
the enemy's intentions, from the general attack which had 
been made along my whole line. 

It was afterwards made plain to me by General Smith why 
he hesitated to comply with my first request. lie was in the 
act of refusing his left, when General McPherson sent him or- 
ders to hold his ground, and that reinforcements would be sent 
to him, or his left protected. General McPherson had evidently 
sent this without knowing the position of the enemy as fully 



Personal Kecollections of Sih:r.max. 215 

as I did. I received no orders from General McPherson during 
the battle. 

In moving out of the timber into the open field in my front, 
now the rear of the army, one of the enemy's columns of at- 
tack (the center column) struck a mill pond, or some other ob- 
struction, just on the edge of an open field, and became en- 
tangled, retarding its progress and exposing the flank of the 
other column. 

I saw that something had confused the enemy, and imme- 
diately ordered Colonel Mersey's Brigade to charge the ad- 
vance column on the exposed flank, and also sent orders to 
Fuller to instantly charge the enemy in his front and to take 
advantage of their embarrassment. Both commands moved 
promptly, and fell upon the enemy and drove them back 
across the field, and I have no doubt this saved my command. 

While this attack was progressing, not hearing from the 
staff-officer I sent to General Smith, and seeing that the enemy 
was passing to my right in the rear, and far down the line of 
the Seventeenth Corps, I sent another staff-officer to that 
flank, who must have passed up the road a short time before 
General McPherson, for he found General Giles A. Smith hotly 
engaged and unable to move. 

Fortunately, two batteries that were in line were in the 
center of Sweeney's Division, on a knoll naturally strong, 
covering both the right and left of Sweeney's Division. This 
knoll being the apex of the formation of Sweeney's Division, 
and the road turning west at that point, Sw r eeney followed the 
direction of the road, forming his line right where his men 
were resting. 

These two batteries fired very effectively upon the enemy's 
advance forces, pouring into them canister at short range. 
The fire was so destructive and Mersey's charge so furious that 
the enemy soon gave way on their front and fell back to the 
timber, General Fuller advanced rapidly across the field driv- 
ing the enemy before him, developed them in a gap between 
General Smith and his right, and drawing a rapid fire on 
his right flank from the body of the enemy that had poured 
around the left of the Seventeenth Corps, he promptly changed 
front with a portion of his Division and, under a galling fire, 
moved on the enemy in the timber, clearing that point. 

The Sixty-fourth Illinois pushed in between the main col- 
umn of the enemy and their advance in the timber and cap- 
tured their skirmish line — the same that killed General Mc- 
Pherson a few minutes before and w T ho were then in possession 
of his papers and effects, including his orders, which we ob- 
tained. 



216 Personal Becollections of Sherman. 

The fighting in General Fuller's front was very severe, 
and the ground contested inch by inch, his artillery doing very 
effective service. Finally, the enemy fell back along Fuller's 
whole line, and I swung my right in order to bring it into line 
with the Brigade that McPherson had ordered up to General 
Giles A. Smith's aid, which had been forced to take position 
to the right and somewhat to the rear of Fuller's advance. 

The Seventeenth Corps reformed its left at right angles 
with the original lines, and joined this Brigade. This brought 
the enemy well to our front, and there we kept them the rest 
of the day. Major-General McPherson arrived on the ground 
during the attack on me ; stood near the ammunition train on 
the right of my line, watching the result of my counter-charge 
upon the enemy. 

As soon as the tide turned in my favor he followed a road 
through the timber, leading from Fuller's right before the ad- 
vance of the left of the Seventeenth Corps, still unaware of 
the advance of the enemy into the gap between Fuller's right 
and the Seventeenth Corps. 

About half an hour after my first repulse of the enemy, I 
received a report that General McPherson was wounded and 
it was about 3 P. M. before I was aware he was dead. 

About 4 P. M. General Logan called, in person, for aid to 
drive back the enemy on the Decatur and Atlanta road, where 
he had made a sortie and gained a temporary advantage, 
breaking through General Morgan L. Smith's Division of the 
Fifteenth Corps. I sent the Second Brigade of the Second Di- 
vision, under Colonel Mersey, accompanied by Captain Jonas 
of my staff. 

Mersey's Brigade immediately went into line and moved 
down the main road, participating in the charge with General 
"Wood's Division of the Fifteenth Corps, retook the works 
and batteries that had been lost, Colonel Mersey receiving a 
wound in his leg, having his horse killed under him. General 
Morgan L. Smith, who witnessed Colonel Mersey's attack, 
sent by Captain Jonas a very complimentary message as to 
Colonel Mersey's charge and its success. When General Logan 
called for Mersey's Brigade, he told me that if the enemy again 
attacked me and I needed help to call upon General J. D. Cox, 
of the Twenty -third Corps. At 5 P. M. the enemy made a dem- 
onstration on my extreme left, and I requested General Cox 
to send me a Brigade, which he promptly did. The enemy, 
however, only opened with artillery. 

Again Mersey's Brigade was called into action about mid- 
night, when General Logan ordered two regiments from it to 
occupy the hill, that had been hotly contested in line of the 
Seventeenth Corps, and relieve the troops of that command. 



Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 217 



Mersey's troops promptly executed the request, crawling on 
their hands and knees, finding the enemy in the ditch on the 
outside and driving them out. 

The time of Colonel Mersey's Brigade had expired; they 
were exempt from participating in this battle, had they chosen 
to avail themselves of this right, and were awaiting transporta- 
tion north. They fought successfully on different parts of 
the field, suffering heavy loss in killed and wounded. Gen- 
eral Sprague, who was at Decatur holding that town, covering 
the trains of the Army of the Tennessee with three regiments 
of his Brigade and six guns of the Chicago Board of Trade 
Battery and one section of the Eighth Michigan Artillery, was 
attacked by the enemy in overwhelming numbers. 

Two Divisions of "Wheeler's Cavalry, dismounted, charged 
upon Sprague from three different directions. General 
Sprague concentrated his command, and, after a doubtful and 
determined contest, held the enemy in check and gained a 
position north of the town, which he was able to keep. In 
their charge the enemy twice got possession of Sprague 's ar- 
tillery but were immediately driven from it. 

General Sprague, by his good generalship and hard fight- 
ing, saved the trains of the Fifteenth, Sixteenth and Seven- 
teenth Corps at Decatur and en route from Boswell to the 
army. The trains on the march were guarded by the Ninth 
Illinois, and the Forty-third Ohio, which regiments, upon 
their arrival at Decatur, went promptly into the action. 

The Sixteenth Corps, at the time of Hood's attack, was in 
the rear of the Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps, stretched out 
upon a common wagon road. Three Brigades disposed in 
single line, numbering about forty-five hundred men and not 
in line with the other Corps, had met the attack of the rebel 
army, staggered it at the first onset, and driven it back with 
great slaughter, leaving the dead and wounded of the enemy in 
our hands. 

Any failure of the part of the Sixteenth Corps to check the 
enemy's advance when he was already in our rear and certain 
of success, would have been disastrous to the whole Army of 
the Tennessee. The fortunate topography of the ground, the 
intelligence of the commanders, and the alacrity and bravery 
of the troops, enabled us to take advantage of the confusion 
created in the enemy's ranks, on finding this Corps prepared 
for attack, and to rout the enemy. 

The disparity of the forces can be seen from the fact that 
in the charge made by the two Brigades under Fuller and 
Mersey, they took 351 prisoners, representing forty-nine dif- 
ferent regiments, eight Brigades, and three Divisions. These 
two Brigades brought back eight battle flags from the enemy. 



218 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

After the fight, 422 of the enemy's dead were buried in 
my front, and large numbers of the wounded were cared for in 
my hospitals. The Sixteenth Corps suffered terribly in the 
Battle of Atlanta. Their loss in killed and wounded was 854 
out of 5,400 men engaged, and nearly every field officer of my 
command was killed or wounded. 

I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

G. M. DODGE, 
Council Bluffs, Iowa. Maj. Gen. U. S. A. 

November 30, 1875. 

There had been, at many meetings of the Society of the 
Army of the Tennessee, discussions of the Battle of Shiloh, 
and at a meeting of the Army of the Tennessee in Cincinnati, 
April <i, 1891, General Sherman gave his views as follows: 

Comrades and Friends : 

We are again assembled, pursuant to adjournment of our 
last meeting in Chicago, and according to the constitution of 
our Society. It was once said that the Army of the Tennessee 
could safely meet on any day of the year, and that day would 
prove to be an anniversary of some one of our battles, but it 
is plain to me that the local committee has chosen this particu- 
lar day because it is the anniversary of the battle of Shiloh, 
which gave us much of the fame of which we, the survivors, 
believe we have just reasons, to be proud. 

Nineteen years ago tonight we lay on the bare ground in 
heavy rain, after a bloody battle, to steal a few hours of rest 
and sleep, certain the next day to renew a struggle which, for 
better or worse, was to have a tremendous influence on the 
history of our race. 

I do not intend to enter on a narrative of events, for I have 
already done that in print; nor do I wish to revive any of the 
controversies to which that great battle has given rise, like 
Waterloo, Gettysburg, Koniggratz, and hundreds of others, 
but simply to ask your indulgence for the few minutes of 
time allotted to me, to illustrate some of the minor phases com- 
mon to all battles. 

In Badeau's Military History we have recorded, substantial- 
ly. General Grant's account of the antecedent events, and of 
the battle itself. In Volume 7 of the United States Military 
Reports of the Rebellion, compiled by Colonel R. N. Scott, we 
have two hundred and thirty-four pages of the official re- 
ports of the commanders of divisions, brigades, regiments and 
detachments; and in Volume .'5, part one, of the same compila- 
tion, we have two hundred and forty-eight pages of the Con- 



Personal Recollections o f Sherman. 219 

federate reports of the same battle. Besides these, I have in 
the course of my official life examined thousands of pages of 
other manuscript matter, all more or less bearing upon this 
particular battle, and my conclusion is that General Badeau's 
condensed account is as near the exact truth as history will 
likely reach ; and that my own account is good enough to stand 
by — being the exact truth from my own standpoint. 

These varied accounts of the same general event illustrate 
what has been remarked by every lawyer — that the best wit- 
nesses, testifying in court, will describe the same thing differ- 
ently, just as every landscape in nature presents a different 
aspect from each point of the compass. Every man naturally 
exaggerates the importance of what he himself has done and 
seen, and correspondingly depreciates that of which he saw 
nothing; and it is perfectly consistent with truth that those 
who were near Shiloh church on the eventful days of April 6 
and 7, 1862, should vary, in their narrative of events, from 
those who remained at the steamboat landing, three miles 
away; or the more intelligent and disinterested observers who 
wrote from their offices at Paducah and Cairo, two hundred 
.miles away. Yet for our present purpose it is sufficient for us 
to know that on the 6th of April, 1862, five Divisions of the 
Army of the Tennessee Avere encamped in the woods back of 
Pittsburg Landing on the upper Tennessee river; that our 
numbers were about 32,000 men; that we were attacked furi- 
ously by the rebel army, ably commanded, composed of at 
least 12,000 men; that we fought unaided during all that day: 
were beaten back step by step, till at night we formed two 
sides of a rectangle, the right covering Snake Creek bridge, and 
the left a ravine about the steam-boat landing: that we were 
not beaten or demoralized, but were abandoned by many of 
our comrades and dreadfully exhausted, with nine thousand 
of our comrades dead or mangled on the field, mingled with 
an equal number of our foes; that during that night we were 
reinforced by Lew Wallace's Division of our own army, and 
by three Divisions of Buell's Army of the Ohio, just arrived 
from Nashville, and that on the next day we swept the field 
and gained a glorious victory for our country, the moral effect 
of which lasted throughout the war. 

Notwithstanding that we now have the official statements 
of the chief actors in that drama, I am conscious that some 
of the good people of Cincinnati prefer to believe the first ac- 
count of their own "reporters on the spot." viz, at Paducah 
and Cairo, who gathered their knowledge from fugitives ami 
deserters; yet we, who remained to the last, prefer to believe 
each other; and in this connection I propose to recount some 
of the smaller episodes not heretofore given. 



220 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

General James H. Wilson, who commanded a Cavalry 
Corps about the end of the war, tells of his once approaching 
the heads of his column, engaged in a noisy skirmish, when he 
met one of his men hurrying back to the rear, evidently de- 
moralized. He called on him to halt, and commenced calling 
him hard names, among others, "coward." The man protest- 
ed he was not a coward, but insisted that "he had lost confi- 
dence in his Colonel." So at Shiloh, some men lost faith in 
their colonels and naturally justified themselves by decrying 
their commanders. 

My camp, or bivouac, was on a small hill near the old log 
house called "Shiloh Meeting House," which gave name to 
the battle. We had a colored man called "Bustamente," who 
was our cook, and looked after our horses. I remember that 
morning well; we all mounted our horses after an early break- 
fast and started to the front. The battle soon began and none 
of us had much time to think of our camp afterwards. Dur- 
ing all that day we fought, and night found us a mile to the 
rear of our camp, which was in possession of our enemy. The 
next day we gained ground steadily, and about 4 P. M. I 
was again on horseback close by our old camp ; the tents were 
still standing, though riddled with bullets. At the picket 
rope in front lay two of my horses, dead. Dead bodies of men 
in blue and gray lay around thick, side by side, and scraps 
of paper show what was the fact — that Beauregard, Brecken- 
ridge and Bragg, old personal friends, had slept the night be- 
fore in my camp, and had carried away my scanty bedding. 
That night of the 7th, as I lay side by side with the dead, I 
wondered what had become of Bustamente. 

His dead body was not there; he was neither "present or 
accounted for." Several days passed, and we had become 
convinced that our enemy had gone, and gone in disorder and 
retreat. But where was Bustamente? About five days after 
the battle, returning from an extensive reconnoissance, tired 
and weary, who should appear but the veritable Bustamente 
himself, radiant and undoubtedly happy to resume his place as 
cook and hostler. "Where have you been, you old rascal?" 
"Why, master, this was no place for sich as me ; I done git out, 
cotched a steamboat and went to Paducah ; heard you was all 
right again and here I is." And there he was, sure enough, and 
he served us well for many a weary month afterward. T think 
Bustamente was not only right, but reasonably prudent. The 
6th of April, 1862, was not a healthy place for "sich as he," 
but for some others I can never be as charitable. 

My aide-de-camp. General Sanger, also had a colored 
servant whom he had brought from Illinois, who stayed near 



Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 221 

us all that day— generally availed himself of the cover of a 
good sized tree, but I recall with gratitude that at night he 
came to us with some hard biscuit and boiled pork, which he 
said he had found in McArthur's camp. Again the next day, 
April 7, he FOUND in some sutler's camp a big cheese, which 
he brought to us and spread out on a log; which cheese formed 
the basis of a claim against Uncle Sam for loyal property ap- 
propriated by the army in the subsistence of his troops, and 
for the evidence of which that sutler persecuted me for years 
afterwards. 

There is no movement laid down in tactics so intricate and 
skillful as the "zigzag" that boy would perform in coming 
from the rear to the front with a cigar, or anything called for; 
down behind a log, then a bee line for a big tree, a good peep 
around the corner, then a run for another tree, till he was in 
sight of the party sought for, when signals were begun. We 
have always given General Albert Meyer the credit of being 
the author of our system of army signals, vulgarly known as 
the "Wig-wag," but I must testify that Sanger's boy prac- 
ticed them in the woods at Shiloh before any of us had ever 
heard of the army signal service. 

For some days after the Battle of Shiloh, and during the 
march to Corinth, my camp was often visited by my old class- 
mate and friend, George H. Thomas, and his staff, and it was 
as good as a farce, when at table, to watch that boy hand to 
Thomas quicker than Signor Blitz, and Lagow and the Staff 
rarely managed to get anything else than "commissary," 
whilst Thomas and his favorites always got the best in camp. 

In the very crisis of the battle of April 16, about 4 o'clock 
P. M., when my Division occupied the line from Snake Creek 
bridge to the forks of the Corinth and Purdy road, there oc- 
curred an incident I have never seen recorded. Barge's sharp- 
shooters or "Squirrel-tail's" occupied the stables, granaries 
and house near the bridge as a strong flank. My Division 
occupied a double line from it, along what had once been a 
lane, with its fences thrown down and the blackberry and sas- 
safras bushes still marking the border of an open cotton field 
in front, and the left was a ravine near which Major Ezra 
Taylor had assembled some ten or twelve guns. This ravine 
was densely wooded and extended to the front nearly two 
hundred yards, and I feared it might be occupied by thp 
enemy, who, from behind the trees, could drive the gunners 
from their posts. I ordered the Colonel of one of my regiments 
to occupy that ravine to anticipate the enemy, but he did not 
quickly catch my meaning or comprehend the tactics by which 
he could fulfill my purpose. I remember well that Colonel 
Thomas W. Sweeney, a one-armed officer who had lost an arm 



222 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

in the Mexican war, but did not belong to my command, stood 
near by and quickly spoke up: "I understand perfectly what 
you want, let me do it." "Certainly/' said I. "Sweeney, 
go at once and occupy that ravine, converting it into a regular 
bastion." He did it, and I attach more importance to that 
event than to any of the hundred single achievements which 
I have since heard "saved the day," for we held that line and 
ravine all night, and the next morning advanced from there to 
certain victory. 

In like manner, on the 8th, when I was ordered by Gen- 
eral Grant to move forward with one of my own Brigades and 
another of Thomas J. Wood's Division of the Army of the 
Ohio, to ascertain if the rebel army had actually retreated to 
Corinth, or were simply repairing damages to renew the at- 
tack, I led in person Hildegrand's Brigade. We reached, 
about six miles out, an old cotton field with deadened timber 
standing, fences all down, and mud in the road and in the 
plowed field ankle deep. Seeing ahead a large number of 
tents with men and horses moving about, I concluded to de- 
ploy a couple of companies of the leading regiment forward 
at "five paces interval," with the remaining eight companies 
in line to support, leaving the rest of the Brigade to follow 
along the road by the flank. I gave the orders in person, and 
the Colonel confessed that he knew not what I wanted or how 
to perform so simple- a tactical maneuver. Thus were we 
forced to teach tactics on the very field of battle. Fortunately, 
Major Fearing, now a citizen of Cincinnati, spoke out, "I 
know what you want and can do it," and promptly he de- 
ployed the leading companies as "skirmishers," by. the right 
flank across that old cotton field, with the remainder of the 
regiment in line % following in support. As we approached the 
ridge, down came with a yell, Forrest's cavalry firing right 
and left with pistols, over the skirmish line, over the supports, 
and right in among me and my staff. Fortunately, I had sent 
my adjutant, Hammond, back to have the Brigade come for- 
ward into line quickly. My aide-de-camp, McCoy, was 
knocked down, horse and rider, into the mud ; but T and the 
rest of my staff ingloriously fled, pell in ell through the mud, 
closely followed by Forrest and his men, with pistols already 
emptied. We sought safety behind the Brigade in the act of 
forming "forward into line" and Forrest and his followers 
were in turn "surprised" by a fire of the Brigade, which emp- 
tied many a saddle, and gave Forrest himself a painful wound, 
but he escaped to the woods on the south of the road. We 
promptly moved the whole Brigade in line of battle over that 
cotton field to the ridge, and captured the LAST of the rebel 
hospitals in charge of Surgeon Lyle. 



Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 223 

McCoy came in afterwards, covered with mud, but in pos- 
session of a jaded horse which he had picked up, different from 
his own, but there was no one to question his title, and on 
the whole he concluded he had got the best of the bargain. 

All who were with me on that 8th of April will recall the 
scenes of desolation and misery we beheld by the roadside and 
at the hospital camp of Surgeon Lyle. "Wagons hauling in 
dead men and dumping them on the ground, as cordwood, for 
burial in long trenches, like sardines in a box. Wounded men 
with mangled, legs and arms, and heads half shot away, hor- 
rible to behold, and still more wounded appealing for water, 
and for help in any form. If there be any lesson I would im- 
press on the young of today it would be to warn them against «. 
the men who make war necessary ; men who, like Jeff Davis, 
Yancy and Toombs, usually arouse the passions and prejudices 
of their fellow mortals 'til war becomes a necessity, whilst / 
they, the. real cause, hold back and leave their deluded fol- 
lowers to catch all the blows and buffets of the storm which 
they had no hand in creating. I wish that some man, Dr. 
Lyle himself, would paint in true and graphic colors, what 
he saw and endured on that 8th day of April, 1862, on the 
ridge behind Pittsburg Landing, for I believe it would be bet- 
ter warning against war in the future than all the humiliations 
of Appomattox and Greensboro. 

I have seen Forrest since the war ; have talked with him 
about this very matter, and he explained that he was left be- 
hind by Breckenridge to protect this hospital camp, and if 
possible to check the pursuit of our forces, which was natur- 
ally expected after the close of the Battle of Shiloh. I am 
sure that had he not emptied his pistols before he passed the 
skirmish line, my career would have ended right there. 

War has its ludicrous, its farcial features, as well as every- 
day life. Everyone can at this distance of time recall events 
at which he laughed as heartily as he ever mourned the death 
of a comrade. I remember today the expression on the face of 
an Arkansas ranger, brought in as a prisoner of war, leading a 
sorrel mare into our camp near Corinth. When led up to me 
he said, "General, he (pointing to the guard) fooled me; he 
had on a white hat, and called out, 'come over here;' I came 
over, and he said, 'you are my prisoner.' " It was the white 
hat that caught him. Then the Arkansas man said: "Gen- 
eral, you are not going to take my horse, are you?" "Certain- 
ly," I said, "your horse is captured property." "But it is a 
race horse," said he. "All the better," said I, and I think one 
of my staff-officers rode that same sorrel mare many hundred 
miles afterwards, but I never saw that ranger again. The 
provost marshal took him in. 



224 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

All reliable accounts agree that General C. F. Smith post- 
ed the army at Pittsburg Landing to fulfill General Halleck's 
instructions of March 1st, 1862 ; that General U. S. Grant suc- 
ceeded to the command, and exercised it at the time of the 
battle, and that Division commanders ranked in the order of 
McClernand, Lew Wallace, Sherman, Hurlburt, Prentiss and 
W. H. L. Wallace ; yet I am often held responsible by the 
critics for the "surprise and stampede" of the fugitives, al- 
though it is equally well known that McPherson and I had 
previously reconnoitered the country forward for ten miles 
and had been skirmishing with the enemy for several days 
prior to the battle. I have never been in battle but what some- 
body was surprised. A good many persons were surprised at 
Shiloh, but there were none but what had a fair notice to be 
ready for anything — for everything that might happen, and the 
report that anybody was bayonetted in bed has long since been 
exploded. Prentiss' Division and mine were in the extreme 
front — were all ready when the blow came, and all the others 
were behind us and had ample time for preparation. The sim- 
ple truth is that we were on the west bank of the Tennessee 
with a purpose to attack the enemy's position at Corinth; that 
General Buell's army of the Ohio was marching from Nash- 
ville to reinforce us, and that the rebel general, Albert Sydney 
Johnston, resolved not to wait our attack on Corinth, but to 
attack us before Buell could arrive. 

His army was divided into three Corps, commanded by 
Polk, Bragg and Hardee, with reserve commanded by Breck- 
enridge. His object was to capture or destroy us before these 
reinforcements could arrive. He failed in this most signally, 
and therefore to us belonged the victory — a victory little ap- 
preciated at that time, and not fully comprehended today. 
But that victory was one of the most important which has 
ever occurred on this continent. It dissipated forever that 
nonsense of one southern man whipping "a dozen Yankees." 
It gave us the prestige, which we had only to follow up, as we 
did at Corinth, at Iuka, at Vicksburg, Chattanooga, Atlanta, 
Columbia and Raleigh — yea, to the end of the war, to assure 
absolute success. 

I have always estimated the victories of the Army of the 
Tennessee at Fort Donelson and Shiloh as the most valuable 
of all, because of their moral effect. They gave our men 
confidence in themselves, and in a corresponding degree shook 
the confidence of southern men in their own prowess, for at 
no subsequent battle did they ever attack with as much vehem- 
ence and perseverance as they did on the morning of April 6. 
The battle of Shiloh was the precursor of many subsequent 
victories which ended, as all the world knows, in the 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 225 

TRIUMPH of our arms and of our cause, so that we have 
reason to assemble here tonight in commemoration of that 
eventful battle. 

General H. W. Halleck at that time was in chief command 
over all the armies in the West, with his headquarters in St. 
Louis, but soon after, he came to Shiloh in person with many 
able and experienced staff-officers, among them Colonel George 
Thorn, then and now of the engineer's corps. He caused the 
battlefield to be surveyed, and his map is still the standard one. 
But Colonel Thorn was not present before or during the bat- 
tle. I am convinced he has located on his map the several 
Divisions incorrectly. I know such is the case with regard to 
my own, and believe so in regard to others, and, therefore, I 
have had prepared a tracing of this map and have located the 
troops as I believe they were at the beginning and end of the 
first day. The map, as thus modified, tells the story of the 
battle. 

The many roads indicated on this map did not exist at the 
time we first reached Pittsburg Landing, nor at the time of 
the battle. Then there was but one single road— the Corinth 
road, which reached the river, affording room for only four 
or five boats to unload, but as other boats accumulated, other 
roads were improvised up the hill from the water's edge to the 
general plateau above, and new roads were made by the wag- 
oners hauling supplies from the boats to the several camps. All 
these roads as marked on the maps were mud roads ; not roads 
at all in a military sense, but simply open ways by which six 
mules could haul about a ton of freight from the river to the 
camps. The general plateau, excepting the cleared fields, was 
wooded with oak, maple and hickory, the latter in some places 
so thick that there was real difficulty in forcing one's way 
through on horseback. 

I know there are many present in this room tonight who 
can verify the changes I suggest, and I will leave this traced 
map with the Secretary of the Society for future use. 

General Sherman and his army were very often criticised 
for acts said to be committed by stragglers, such as pillaging, 
robbery, etc. If this was true, it was absolutely against all the 
orders. General Sherman held to the policy, that in the 
enemy's country, where necessary, they should live off of the 
country, and he had full precedent in this by every other na- 
tion. 

The English were very critical in this matter, but anyone 



226 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

can read of the campaign of the Duke of "Wellington, who prac- 
ticed and upheld this policy. He followed it in Portugal and 
Spain. Writing to the Earl of Liverpool, February 23, 1811, 
he says : 

The French have shown throughout the war in the Penin- 
sula, but particularly in the last campaign in Portugal, that 
they operate on the flank and rear and communications of 
their enemy, never having any anxiety about their own. And 
this system is the consequence of the mode in which they sub- 
sist their army. 

They plunder everything they find in the country, every 
article, whether of food or raiment, and every animal and 
vehicle of every description is considered to belong of right 
and without payment to the French army. 

His campaigns were noted for the pillaging of his soldiers 
and the living off of the country. 

Napoleon quartered his armies on the enemy and subsisted 
off of the country. Germany, Austria and Russia did the same, 
but they did not do it in as orderly a manner or under such 
strict instruction as Sherman's army did. 

General Sherman says in answer to these criticisms : 

The Army of the Tennessee traversed the land from Padu- 
cah to Memphis, and from Vicksburg to "Washington, inland, 
a distance of more than two thousand miles of country, sparse- 
ly populated, with families wide apart, the male members of 
which were in the ranks of our opposing armies, and in the 
two years — 1864-65 — I heard of but two cases of rape. Again, 
all the able-bodied white men of the South were in the arm- 
ies of the Confederacy, far away from their homes, leaving 
their families to the care of the black slaves. Now I do not 
know a single instance where the females of any family were 
abused by the blacks. These black slaves labored for their 
master's wives and daughters, protected them, and never, to 
my knowledge, in a single instance violated that sacred trust, 
although they well understood that our success would be their 
freedom, and the success of their masters would doom them 
to another long period of slavery. If for no other reason than 
this, every southern gentleman, every soutnern man who 
claims to be a descendant of the proud Chevaliers and Huge- 
nots, should honor the black man for his fidelitv in that dread 



Personal Kecollections of Sherman. 227 

period ; should protect him in all his acquired rights, and aid 
him to rise to the scale of social and political life. It is dif- 
ficult, if not impossible, to bring force to bear on the individual 
living in a prejudiced community, as for instance in Utah, and 
in the South, where slavery had made the common white citizen 
(the juryman) regard the negro as necessarily his inferior, 
because no man in this country can be punished for crime, 
save on presentment by the Grand Jury, and after trial by a 
pettit jury on the vicinage. This, our Constitution, our funda- 
mental law, which the President, Congress and all the courts 
must enforce, was unquestionably meant by our forefathers 
to protect the weak against the strong, but now it shelters the 
guilty against the humane purposes of the law. Prejudices 
will, however, gradually disappear; they have largely disap- 
peared in our day, and we who believe in the triumph of ab- 
stract, have faith that the day will come, in good time, when 
all men will be absolutely and perfectly equal before the law. 
Time is the great physician, and we who can compare the state 
of feeling and of facts in 1861, can measure the future by this 
scale of twenty years, and thereby prognosticate what will be 
the probable state of feeling and of facts in this, our country, 
at the end of the present century. We believe that history will 
adjudge the Civil War to have been not only one of the great- 
est, but one of the best wars that ever occurred on earth, and 
that the Army of the Tennessee accomplished a large share in 
its beneficient results. 

On December 21, 1884, Colonel F. D. Grant informed me 
that he had just come from Dr. Fordyce Baker, who told him 
that his father could not live long; perhaps a month or two; 
perhaps not so long. He said that Governor Fish and Dr. 
Newman were the only ones that knew it. I was thunder- 
struck, for only the Sunday before I was at the house, and 
the General looked fairly well, though I knew he was much 
distressed. 

I told Colonel Grant that Sherman was in the city, and 
suggested going down and telling him how sick his father was, 
and have him see him. We went to the Fifth Avenue Hotel 
and found General Sherman, who said he was in good health; 
was troubled some with asthma, but was full of work, attend- 
ing to meetings, etc., etc. Colonel Fred said to General Sher- 
man : 



228 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

I think my father's history tells more of what you did than 
your own Memoirs. 

Sherman said : 

Well, when Grant writes anything we can all depend on 
getting the facts. When he writes and says himself what was 
done, and what he saw, no soldier need fear; but when others 
write what he does and says, it is not always so. 

Colonel Fred said he had been having considerable trouble 
with the publishers or editors of the Century, who were to 
publish the war articles, Shiloh, Vicksburg, Wilderness and 
Appomattox, and that they had made his father very angry; 
that they wanted him to change the word Rebel in his article 
to Confederate and the word Union to Federal. He said that 
finally General Grant wrote a short letter demanding that his 
articles be published as written. Fred further said that his 
father had written three articles, but that he did not believe 
he would write any more. Sherman said: 

This trying to soften treason by expunging the words of 
the General was wrong, and that if it kept on, pretty soon the 
sons of Southern soldiers would consider it as much of an 
honor that their fathers fought under Lee as the sons of 
Union soldiers that t heir fathers fought under Grant; that the 
line of Union and Rebel, of loyalty and treason, should be al- 
ways kept distinct. • 

I remarked : 

As long as our friends live it will, but the tendency all the 
time is to wipe out history ; to forget it ; to forgive, excuse and 
soften, and when all the soldiers pass from this age it will be 
easy to slip into the idea that one side was as good as the 

other. 

Sherman said : 

It was a conspiracy until Sumpter was fired upon, after that 
it was a rebellion. 

Governor Woodford came in and Sherman related to him 
what Fred Grant had said, but Woodford made no response. 
Fred also said his father had written his life from boyhood to 



Personal Eecollections of Sherm an. 229 

Donelson ; had written Shiloh, Vicksburg, Granada, Chatta- 
nooga, and the march of Sherman from Memphis to Chatta- 
nooga, and the Wilderness; said his father had omitted writ- 
ing for four days. He asked me to come up and see his father 
evenings. 

AVhen you compare those statements existing then with the 
leniency that exists today, you can see what a marked change 
there is. 

Virginia has placed in the rotunda of the Capitol in Wash- 
ington, the statue of General Lee, without any protest or criti- 
cism from the citizens, and with only an occasional criticism 
from the veterans. 

During a trip from New York to Cincinnati, to attend a 
meeting of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, the ques- 
tion of the transcontinental lines came up, and Sherman ex- 
pressed a wish that when the lines from Portland, Oregon, 
which were being constructed by way of Tacoma and Seattle, 
and so on north to the Canadian Pacific were completed, Ave 
could make a trip, starting from New York and going by way 
of California, and thence north and back by way of the Cana- 
dian Pacific, ending our trip and making the circle complete 
in New York. I said to him : 

General, whenever that connection is made I will take a 
car and we will make the trip. You shall select your party. I 
have never seen the Canadian Pacific, and I will wait and go 
with you. 

A short time before he died, in 1891, he was in my office 
in New York, and was standing at the window looking at 
the grand view of New York bay. He said to me: "Dodge, 
have you noticed that that Hue between Seattle and the Ca- 
nadian Pacific is nearly completed?" T answered and said, "I 
had not, but when it is I am ready to make the trip." 

While he lay dead in New York the connection of those 
lines was made. It was the only thing which he seemed to 



230 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

express a great desire to accomplish before he rounded out 
his life, and it is the regret of my life that he was unable to 
do so. I left New York a few days afterward. 

General Sherman died February 14, 1891. I had left him 
only a week before, when he appeared to me perfectly well. 
I was en route to the Pacific coast, attending to my duties, 
when at Omaha I received a dispatch from his family, telling 
me of his death and requesting my return. 

i immediately returned to New York and went directly to 
the family, and found that the funeral arrangements were un- 
der the direction of Major-General Henry C. Slocum and 
Major-General 0. 0. Howard, both of whom had been Army 
and Corps commanders in General Sherman's army. 

He was given a military funeral, the procession being under 
the command of Major-General 0. 0. Howard, commanding 
the Department of the East, and the pallbearers were Major- 
Generals J. M. Schofield, 0. 0. Howard, D. E. Sickles, G. M. 
Dodge, J. M. Corse, Wager Swayne, Stewart L. Woodford, 
Rear-Admirals D. L. Braine, J. A. Greer, Professor H. L. Ken- 
drick and General Joseph E. Johnston. 

It was a very imposing procession from the house on 75th 
street to the Ferry. The streets were lined with immense 
crowds. The remains were taken on a funeral train on the 
Pennsylvania railroad to St. Louis. There the Society of the 
Army of the Tennessee was the guard of Honor, and the Mili- 
tary had charge of the procession there, his remains being car- 
ried on an artillery caisson, and the streets there for miles 
were lined with citizens. 

The Society of the Army of the Tennessee marched imme- 
diately in the rear of the caisson, and the scenes along the 
march were very impressive — at times negroes, viewing the 
procession, would often step out from the sidewalk and drop 
on their knees and offer prayer as the caisson bearing the 
remains passed. 



Personal Eecollections of Sherman. 331 

At the burial in the cemetery at St. Louis, the services 
were performed by Father T. E. Sherman. General Schofield 
stood by my side at the side of the grave, and as the son of 
General Sherman read the service without a tremor, Schofield, 
with tears in his eyes, turned to me and said: "How long 
could you do that?" I answered, "Not a moment." And on 
the return from the grave to our cars I asked Father Sherman, 
knowing what his feelings must be, how he could go so quiet- 
ly through the ceremony, even to giving the order for the fir- 
ing of the salute? 

And his answer was : "I could not do it, only that it was 
my duty." 

General Sherman was born on February 8, 1820, therefore 
was a few days over 71 years old, and apparently in full 
vigor, mentally and physically when he died. 

My own thoughts as to General Sherman were given upon 
his death to a New York journal as follows : 

I was with General Sherman from Corinth to Atlanta 
during the war. We implicitly obeyed him, because we saw 
that he was master of the art of war, and we soon learned that 
apparently, in an outward sense, he had no sympathy outside 
of his duties. He was called a tycoon by some soldiers on that 
account, but no soldier received an order of his with any 
doubt. They believed any order he gave meant victory. After 
the war, at the reunion, at the banquet table, in his own house, 
in business circles, a greater man, a kinder man and a more 
lovable man it has never been my lot to meet. I speak of him 
as a friend who, from the first time I ever met him, has 
been almost a father to me. I speak of him enthusiastically, 
for my heart approves what my head knows of the General. 

General Sherman in the war and General Sherman after 
the war, however, were two distinct persons. During the war 
he was of, all commanders, most exact and exacting. There 
was with him but one thing for a soldier to do, and that was 
his duty. He was sometimes gruff and sometimes seemed a 
hard task master, and yet, within his heart, no commander 
thought more of his men and was more wrapped up in their 
welfare. Since the war he grew gradually milder, kinder, 
warmer, deeper and more cordial. No great general has been 
easier of approach to the rich and poor alike. No man has per- 



232 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

sonally done more to aid those who fought under him and in 
their need appealed to him for help. His charities to his old 
soldiers forced economies that he should not have made. 
Wherever he went he was the center of friends who crowded 
around him. 

Every Saturday he would come to my office, No. 1 Broad- 
way, and watch the foreign steamers go out and come in. You 
could see them round Sandy Hook, and his comments on them 
were always very interesting. 

I do not regard the march from Atlanta to the sea as the 
great military achievement of General Sherman. It was a 
bold march, and made the General's name forever famous. The 
Atlanta campaign was a far greater achievement, with men 
well drilled, well commanded — a battle every day. The cam- 
paign of Atlanta was a succession of brilliant victories. The 
march to the sea was a romance. It is sung all over the world, 
and is the most noted because it split the Confederacy in two 
without a struggle, and because Sherman cast loose and 
staked his army, as people thought, recklessly. But he knew 
there was no force to stop him before he got to Savannah. But 
infinitely greater in a military sense was the march from 
Savannah to Goldsborough. Here Sherman had a small army, 
about half of what he started with from Chattanooga. He 
was cut off from all supplies and it was impossible for any 
men from the north to reach him. He marched into the face 
of all the forces that could be concentrated in all the South, 
with the enemy doubling up before him. It was an occasion 
that required generalship of the highest order, military 
strategy and remarkable courage and fortitude. I know noth- 
ing in the history of the war that was a greater or more bril- 
liant or more successful achievement, except Vicksburg. In 
a military sense it made Sherman. It is only a few days ago 
that I was talking with one of the greatest generals of Europe, 
and he expressed to me the same opinion. I think that down 
in his heart General Sherman himself regarded the march 
from Savannah as his best title to military greatness. 

General Sherman's private life was perfect. He was a 
model husband and a loving father. His private life is as 
beautiful and as sacred as his military life was distinguished. 
On religious matters I don't know the exact nature of his be- 
lief. His wife was a devout Catholic. No one knew her but 
to love her, a woman beautiful in her devotion to her church, 
and the General doubtless regarded her religious beliefs with 
favor and reverence. 

If General Sherman had a weakness — I speak now of the 
time during the Avar — no one ever found it out. He was always 
the same. He was never despondent. He never seemed to 



Personal Becqllections of Sherman. 233 

have a doubt. To all appearances he was too great for dis- 
couragements, too courageous to entertain even a possibility 
of failure, and of too much faith to entertain an idea of any- 
thing but ultimate success. He rode at the head of the best 
drilled and disciplined army the world ever saw. as one on 
whom was laid the heaviest weight of a great responsibility, 
but who believed that the outcome was as certain as the sun 
was to rise on the morrow. The things that affected others 
did not affect him. What others hoped, he felt and believed 
with his whole heart and soul. Grant himself, made greater 
by the final victory of the war, was in almost all things dif- 
ferent from Sherman ; but in loyalty, in faith and confidence 
in their own plans, they were alike. General Sherman never 
had any patience with grumblers and growlers, criticisers of 
orders and the "I told you so's. " I remember well a meeting 
between one of these officers and General Sherman. General 
Sherman sized up the growler and said: "What are you com- 
plaining about? You are an officer. You ought to get down 
on your knees and thank Heaven you are even allowed to 
carry a musket in the great cause for which we are fighting." 
The General passed on and the growler was silenced. 

Fpon the death of General Sherman, in 1891, and at the next 
meeting of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee in Chi- 
cago, October 8, 1891. the following committee was appointed 
for the purpose of erecting a monument in Washington in 
honor and memory of General Sherman : 

Major-General Grenville M. Dodge, Colonel J. P. How, 
Brigadier-General Andrew Hickenlooper, Brigadier-General 
John W. Noble, Colonel David B. Henderson, Major S. E. Bar- 
rett, Colonel Augustus Jacobsen, Colonel W. McCrory. Colonel 
Cornelius Cadle. 

That committee, with the aid of Congress, raised $123,- 
969.91 for the erection of the monument. By the act of Con- 
gress, approved July 5, 1892, making it's appropriation, the 
Sherman Monument commission was created, consisting of the 
president of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, the 
Secretary of War, the Commander of the Army of the United 
States. 

The erection of the monument was under the supervision 
of the following officers of the Corps of Engineers: Col- 



234 Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

onel John M. Wilson, 1895-1897; Lieutenant Jno. S. Sewell, 
1897; Colonel Theodore A. Bingham, 1897-1903; Colonel 
Thomas W. Symons, 1903. 

At the competition of models, Carl Rohl-Smith was select- 
ed as the sculptor of the monument, and the contract was 
awarded to him on November 18th, 1896. 

Dedication of the monument was October 15, 1903. The 
military and naval pageant was restricted to the United States 
forces, army, navy and marine Corps, stationed in the vicinity 
of Washington, and the National Guard of the District of Co- 
lumbia, under command of Lieutenant General S. B. M. 
Young. 

The Societies of the Army of the Tennessee, Army of the 
Potomac, Army of the Cumberland and Army of the Ohio, 
attended in a body, and were represented at the dedication 
orations. The President of the Commission at the dedicatory 
exercises gave the following description of the monument : 

At the time of the death of General Sherman, he was presi- 
dent of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee. That So- 
ciety immediately resolved to erect in Washington a suitable 
memorial to its great commander, and, with the aid of Con- 
gress, has given you this splendid life-work of art. 

Immediately after the great review of all the armies in 
Washington, General Sherman went to his home in St. Louis. 
At that time I was in command of that department, and in 
describing the grand review of all the armies, Sherman said 
that he had witnessed the march of that magnificent and splen- 
didly equipped Army of the Potomac, and felt a great desire 
that his army should make as creditable an appearance. After 
the review of the first day, he returned to his command across 
the Potomac, and called around him his commanding officers 
and told them what he had witnessed, urging them the neces- 
sity of their making kncwn to their commands the necessity 
for them to brush up and put forth their best efforts in con- 
duet and marching the next day. 

As he rode at the head of his column up Pennsylvania av- 
enue, when he reached the rise near the Treasury Department, 
he turned and looked down the avenue and saw his old army 
coming — with their old spirit, energy and swing — and was sat- 



Personal Recollections of Sherman. 235 

isfied that they would do their best ; and he believed it was the 
happiest and most satisfactory moment of his life. The crowd 
seemed to appreciate his thoughts, and welcomed him with a 
great ovation. The sculptor, Carl Rohl-Smith, has endeav- 
ored to present General Sherman in bronz as he appeared at 
that moment, and you can all appreciate how ably and satis- 
factorily he has accomplished his work. 

The two allegorical figures represent "war" and "peace," 
the effect of which probably no general officer more emphat- 
ically enforced than General Sherman. 

The bas-reliefs represent on the north front the "march to 
the sea," on the east front Sherman at Chattanooga attack- 
ing Bragg 's right, on the south front the battle of Atlanta on 
July 22, the greatest battle of the campaign, and Sherman 
walking before the campfire, with hands clasped behind him, 
in deep thought, while everything around him was sleeping. 
This is so characteristic that all who served under Sherman 
will appreciate it. He once said to me that we little knew how 
many anxious hours he passed in pacing in front of his tent in 
thought and planning while we were quietly sleeping. 

The medallions represent the Army and Corps commanders 
of the Army of the Tennessee who served under Sherman. 
They are McPherson and Howard, Logan and Blair, Smith and 
Grierson, Ransom and Dodge. 

The four arms of the service, engineers, cavalry, artillery 
and infantry, are each represented by a soldier as he appeared 
in campaign. 

The mosaic walk surrounding the monument has in it the 
names of the principal battles in which General Sherman was 
engaged. 

It was a great misfortune that the sculptor, Carl Rohl- 
Smith, died with his work only half completed, but it was a 
very fortunate circumstance that his wife, Mrs. Sarah Rohl- 
Smith, who is present today, could take up his work where he 
left it and carry it to so successful a completion, and on be- 
half of the commission, and of the societies of the four great 
armies here represented, and, I know, of all others who have 
seen this great work of art, I wish to extend to her our hearty 
thanks and appreciation of the great success she has achieved 
in the efficient and satisfactory manner in which this national 
statue has been completed. 

The commission, through the courtesy of the United States 
Minister, has placed upon the tomb of Carl Rohl-Smith, in 
Copenhagen, Denmark, at this moment a suitable floral tribute 
to his memory, and in testimony of its appreciation of his 
great work. 



23G Personal Recollections of Sherman. 

Master William Tecumseh Thorndike, a grandson of Gen- 
eral Sherman, unveiled the monument. The immense audi- 
ence was then addressed by the President of the United States, 
who was followd by Colonel D. B. Henderson of the Army of 
the Tennessee, Major-General Daniel E. Sickles of the Army 
of the Potomac, General Charles H. Grosvenor of the Army 
of the Cumberland, and General Thomas J. Henderson of the 
Army of the Ohio. 

"We see then that General Sherman, as a soldier, and Wil- 
liam Tecumseh Sherman as a citizen, were distinctly two dif- 
ferent men. Sherman as a soldier asked nothing, would take 
nothing except duty from his subordinates, and he gave noth- 
ing but absolute loyalty and duty to a superior. He had the 
good will of every man who worked under him. I know of no 
man who ever received an order to make a march or go into 
battle, but felt he would make the one successful and win the 
other. Sherman had the nickname in the Army of the Ten- 
nessee of the "Old Tycoon," but the soldiers knew that be 
protected and looked after their interests, and they knew he 
would take care of them. 

General Sherman, after the Avar, when he came into civil 
life, was one of the most generous of men. To the old soldiers 
and commanders who served under him, he could not be too 
gracious. At every opportunity he would push them to 
the front. At a dinner at his club, or at his home, he had a 
nice way or faculty of making every soldier believe that he 
had done something wonderful, or he gave him the credit of 
having done something that would give him standing where- 
ever he was. 

He spent a great portion of his income for the personal 
good of old soldiers, and no person could have traveled with 
him, as I have done, and see the expressions of love, sympathy 
and respect he received, but would value him as I do — for his 
large generosity and great deeds after the war. And, as a 



Personal Recollectio n- of Sherman. 237 

statesman, his writings and speeches stamp him as able to 
grapple with any national problem. 

It seems almost impossible for us who knew him from the 
beginning of the war to its close, and then to have known him 
from the close of the Avar to his death, to appreciate the two 
distinct qualities that made him superior in each of his two 
lives. 

The patience, the firmness, the resolution with which he 
pursued his difficult campaign against Johnston from Chatta- 
nooga to Atlanta, constitute one of the finest achievements in 
history. The boldness of conception, the ingenuity of the plan, 
the accepting of desperate chances in giving Lee an opportun- 
ity to crush him in his campaign from Savannah to Golds- 
boro, will forever give Sherman prestige as a bold, fearless, 
strategical commander. Upon that campaign alone I am will- 
ing to stake Sherman's military reputation for all time. 



